Doorstop - AMA 16th National Conference 2004 - AMA President, Dr Bill Glasson, Sheraton Brisbane - Reviews the Great Health Debate, Federal Health Minister Tony Abbott vs Federal Shadow Health Minister Julia Gillard

GLASSON:       We've just had a very constructive session this morning with Tony Abbott the Health Minister, and Julia Gillard. 

It was an ideal platform with both sides, who'll put their views on a range of issues, particularly around public hospitals - around how they feel they can reform the public health agenda between - public hospital agenda, between the state and federal divide.

This is the one issue, as you know, we've been very vocal about.  The costs, the extra costs in the system.  And I think that we've got some idea where Labor's going on this, and an idea with Tony Abbott's suggestion of one single body.

Now, obviously suggesting that's the Commonwealth.  From the AMA's point of view, we'd want to look at all the suggestions - look at actually what difference it will make, but more importantly, make sure we don't establish yet another bureaucracy.

And it's very easy to set up a commission and say, 'well listen, this is going to solve the problems.' But in reality you'll still be dealing with a state and a federal jurisdiction and, the question how is this going to translate into, I suppose, more money into clinical care.  And this is the real issue.         

There is not enough money for the doctors and nurses to provide the care that patients require.  There was good discussion around Indigenous health.  Again it's an area that we are very concerned about at the moment.  Or have been for a long time. 

On the back of Noel Pearson's oration last night, I think this has brought Indigenous health yet again to the forefront, and as I said to both parties, I want to know exactly what they are going to do for their election platforms, how are they going to roll this money out, and what extra money's going into the system.

GP workforce issues are huge.  Not only GPs, but there are doctor shortages across the board.  Whatever policy directive they take, I've asked both sides to consider what impact this is going to have on the doctors within the system, both preserving the doctors who are currently in the system, obviously attracting new doctors from within.  But also exactly how they're going to handle the issue of overseas trained doctors.

So across the board we've got to have good discussion about a range of issues.  We didn't really discuss the issue of the long-term care scheme, which as you know the AMA's very adamant about, but I'd like to know, obviously before the election, how both parties stand on this issue.

QUESTION:      What is your reaction to Julia Gillard's Meningococcal, or is it ...

GLASSON:       No mate.  Different, mate.

QUESTION:      Different.

GLASSON:       Different altogether, mate.  Yeah. Yeah. I mean, with meningococcus, the reality was they should have funded pneumococcus first, because really that was much broader and much bigger.

Because the meningococcus is much rarer.  But because when you do get it you can really, really get it though, it - and they had all that publicity a couple of years ago - Lane, you were involved with it up there in Queensland when we had the meningococcus issue up here.

That's why it was ultimately pushed, and - but in reality it should have been pneumococcus, and then ultimately focused on meningococcus, because the reality is the strain of meningococcus that we're - that we're vaccinated against, is only a small element of the number of cases that we get in Australia. 

So that seventy-five per cent or so we can't vaccinate.  We haven't got the vaccine.  So we're actually only vaccinating against a small percentage.

Ends