Doctors voted most trusted professionals in Australia

Doctors have been rated as Australia’s most trusted professionals in an independent survey of more than 1,000 people commissioned by AMA Queensland.

AMA Queensland President, Dr Mason Stevenson, said it was ironic Australia’s most trusted profession was having difficulty as a result of one of the least trusted, politicians. He hopes the poll will push governments to support Australian doctors and address bureaucratic red tape, insufficient funds and bed shortages. Just under half of those surveyed (46.76%) chose doctors as the most trusted professionals with nurses coming in second at 20.74%.

Joint statement on collaborative care

The AMA this week joined with the Royal Australian College of General Practitioners and the Royal Australian and New Zealand College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists to call on the Senate Community Affairs Committee that is inquiring into the Health Legislation Amendment (Midwives and Nurse Practitioners) Bill 2009 and two related Bills to support the Government’s amendments to the Bill.

The AMA, the RACGP and RANZCOG statement supported Government amendments that will require midwives and nurse practitioners to work in formal collaborative arrangements with medical practitioners, stating that collaborative care is essential for the quality, safety and continuity of patient care. It emphasised that patients enjoy better heath outcomes when they are treated in a model of care that provides coordinated, continuous and comprehensive patient-centred care delivered by appropriately trained healthy professionals.

The joint statement said it was imperative that collaborative care arrangements are put in place between health professionals who are involved in patient care and in a position to consider the clinical needs of a patient, and highlighted that doctors have been working effectively with other health care professionals for generations. The Government’s amendments to the legislation currently before Parliament clearly support this approach and are sufficiently flexible to allow different team-based models to be developed, based on local circumstances and the clinical needs of patients.

The joint statement also said that it was unhelpful to suggest (as some lobby groups have) that midwives, nurse practitioners and doctors will be competing with each other under collaborative care arrangements. If this notion is accepted by midwives, nurse practitioners and doctors, true clinical collaboration will never be possible. The AMA, the RACGP and RANZCOG therefore strongly caution against adopting a presumption of competition rather than clinical collaboration. AMA President, Dr Andrew Pesce, reinforced these points during his appearance before the Senate Community Affairs Committee on Thursday. Read more

Map locator for doctors

The Department of Health and Ageing has developed an online map locator that assists doctors with information on entitlements and incentives programs. Click here to access the locator.

Changes to DVA cards in 2010

All Department of Veterans Affairs (DVA) Repatriation Health Cards – DVA cards – will expire during 2010. DVA will begin reissuing all cards from March 2010. All eligible veterans, war widows/widowers and dependants will be issued with a new card. Click here for more information.

Season's Greetings and a Happy New Year

This will be the last edition of GP Network News for 2009. The Federal AMA offices will close on Christmas Eve and reopen on 4 January 2009. The AMA wishes readers of GP Network News the very best for the festive season and the New Year.