Australian Medical Association

The AMA submission highlights that the Australian Guidelines for the Prevention and Control of Infection in Healthcare 2010 already govern the management of health care practitioners who have blood-borne viruses and makes the point that there is no need to de-register a medical practitioner because they have a blood-borne virus.  The AMA has asked the Board to clarify its role in regulating the scope of practice of medical practitioners who are infected with a blood-borne virus in isolation from the way this issue is managed by medical practitioners and the health care organisations in which they practice.  The AMA has suggested the Board undertake a second round of consultation once it has clarified what action would constitute a breach of guidelines and that action the Board might take in such cases.

The Australian Medical Council (AMC) is developing a national code of professional conduct for doctors entitled Good Medical Practice: A Code of Conduct for Doctors in Australia (previously entitled Good Medical Practice: A Draft Code of Professional Conduct). The Code is intended to supersede existing State and Territory medical board professional conduct codes. The AMC intends to recommend that it be adopted by the new national medical board. The AMC's Final Consultation Draft of April 2009 reflects the feedback they received in response to the previous public consultation draft of August 2008.

The AMA's submission is attached.

Whilst the AMA considers the Final Consultation Draft to be a major improvement on the earlier version, the AMA has highlighted a few sections that require further amendment, including the sections on conscientious objection and on conflicts of interest. The AMA has also emphasised the need for the release of the Code to be accompanied by relevant public and profession based education campaigns and to be subject to a regular 3-5 year review cycle.

AMA submission to the AMC regarding the training program of the Royal Australian and New Zealand College of Psychiatrists (RANZCP).

Some of the issues raised by trainees include concerns about the training and information provided to supervisors and examiners, the examination process, and the availability of remediation for trainees in difficulty.

AMA Joint Submission on Good Medical Practice: A Draft Code of Professional Conduct (August 2008)