Qld Doctor Contracts

[xactly]

I was wondering what Qld posters thoughts on this issue are.

as a Qld Doc myself Im by turns furious and frustrated at the way we are being portrayed in the media and the slangs in parliament. Some of these slurs are about people I work with, I trained under.

Honourable people, and I thought, an honourable profession that I was proud of but it seems we are ALL being portrayed as crooks and frauds.


Not to mention greedy. I earn as much as the health minister. He earns more than me now his independant commission has given him a pay rise of 20% last thursday.
Since its backdated to the beginning of the financial year, he actually gets a payrise of 40% this year!

I cant understand why signing a "contract" that can be changed at the whim of the government and the health minister at any time is thought to be a reasonable thing.
Would you buy a house with a contract that can be changed at any time by the bank?

please visit keepourdoctors.com.au and its facebook page.

If you have any questions I would be glad to answer them,

Cheers
Xactly

 

[Ed Barton]

Not to mention greedy. I earn as much as the health minister. He earns more than me now his independant commission has given him a pay rise of 20% last thursday.

Not bad pay for a man who left school at 14!

I have not met anyone who supports the govt on the issue.

 

[Hoffy]

I've not seen any reporting or analysis presenting doctors as crooks or frauds in relation to this issue. Not saying it hasn't happened, I just haven't seen it.

 

[Ideo]

I have a question. Does the huge majority and lack of an upper house mean that the current qld government simply doesn't care about the public reaction to these things?

 

[joanmc]

I fully support the doctors in this. I think our society seriously undervalues those people that will get up in the middle of the night to save your life. This also includes coppers, ambos, nurses, firies.
Why does the peanuts/monkeys argument apply to pollies but not here?
I would prefer a well paid doctor than a well paid politician any day of the week.

 

[catsteve]

QLD health is hands down the worst and most expensive in the country. It doesn't help that every two-bit town of 250 persons demands, and gets, its own hospital/doctor.

one word for you mate.

Locum.

Loyalty to a single employer died a generation ago. Same goes for doctors. Take what you can. Qld health won't support you.

 

[xactly]

I have a question. Does the huge majority and lack of an upper house mean that the current qld government simply doesn't care about the public reaction to these things?

Yes.
Please see Tony Fitzgeralds recent submission to the Crime &misconduct and Other legislation amendment bill 2014.

They are ruling absolutely. Health, Law courts..... This is how...

http://www.parliament.qld.gov.au/documents/committees/LACSC/2014/CMOLAB2014/submissions/004.pdf

 

[Ideo]

Yes.
Please see Tony Fitzgeralds recent submission to the Crime &misconduct and Other legislation amendment bill 2014.

They are ruling absolutely. Health, Law courts..... This is how...

http://www.parliament.qld.gov.au/documents/committees/LACSC/2014/CMOLAB2014/submissions/004.pdf

Slight Dorothy Dix there on my part I have to admit.

See, for instance the VLAD laws and the massive politicisation of the court system. It's genuinely worrying.

 

[xactly]

QLD health is hands down the worst and most expensive in the country.

one word for you mate.
Locum.
Loyalty to a single employer died a generation ago. Same goes for doctors. Take what you can. Qld health won't support you.

I agree.

However.....

Some of us feel that our profession is a calling as well and we have a duty of care to the poor who have no other health recourse and the future doctors we are training.

As we were trained.

Looked at it in this light and knowing what the NHS has produced ... we DO NOT WANT TO WALK AWAY.

We want to work, we want to teach, we want to research. We want to protect the system from unfettered management decisions made solely in the interests of finance.

There is a need for good administration. There is a need for robust management systems. Some Doctors have rorted the system. This should be addressed and stopped. But the balance has tipped too far in the favour of management and this is wrong.

 

[china]

Dont depend on the government to feed you. You need to develop your private practice so that you can be immunised against the vagaries and whims of ministers and their bureaucracies.

 

[xactly]

Dont depend on the government to feed you. You need to develop your private practice so that you can be immunised against the vagaries and whims of ministers and their bureaucracies.

I make more money in private.

I DO work private. It is robust. I could quit tomorrow and have an extraordinarily comfortable life without working any extra hours.

My frustration is with watching a health system melt in front of my eyes. The good ones are going or jumping ship now. The mediocre ones with no place to go are staying.

There are specialities who cannot work in private in isolation. these will be left to pick up the pieces and the experience and passion that we had for our work is disappearing.

Ultimately the doctors and patients of the future will be working in an environment exactly like the NHS stafford service.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stafford_Hospital_scandal

get your private health insurance up to date as a Queenslander... or dont get sick... ever...

 

[Hoffy]

I have a question. Does the huge majority and lack of an upper house mean that the current qld government simply doesn't care about the public reaction to these things?

Probably. They are doing what they think is right and will be judged at the next election. That's the idea isn't it?

 

[china]

I make more money in private.

There are specialities who cannot work in private in isolation. these will be left to pick up the pieces and the experience and passion that we had for our work is disappearing.

Ultimately the doctors and patients of the future will be working in an environment exactly like the NHS stafford service.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stafford_Hospital_scandal

get your private health insurance up to date as a Queenslander... or dont get sick... ever...

Agree entirely.

What is irritating though is that the government likes to portray the public health system as providing the same level of care as the private sector.

That is the biggest propaganda push of all time within the Oz health care system.

I think they should come straight with the public and make it known that as a patient, you get what you pay for.

 

[xactly]

Want to know how Bundaberg and a "rogue surgeon" happens?

read the attached:
open letter in the townsville bulletin today

Soon every health district will recreate it all over the state.

 

[china]

Want to know how Bundaberg and a "rogue surgeon" happens?

read the attached:
open letter in the townsville bulletin today

Soon every health district will recreate it all over the state.

I haven't followed the Queensland situation closely but I cannot imagine that the government could replace a majority of specialists with overseas doctors to push through their contracts. I think if you guys stand firm you can cause the government to back down.

 

[wylie]

What is irritating though is that the government likes to portray the public health system as providing the same level of care as the private sector.

That is the biggest propaganda push of all time within the Oz health care system.

I think they should come straight with the public and make it known that as a patient, you get what you pay for.

I've always held private health cover. I'm curious to you China and xactly what you both think of patients who hold private cover using the public system? I've never done it, but I know it happens. I have one "friend" who has full private cover and several ongoing health issues. Not only has she refused to admit she has private cover, she has bumped public patients by being a squeaky wheel and I believe some hospital clerical and booking staff have allowed her to jump up the queue rather than have to deal with her and her pushy ways and "clamp on and don't let go and don't shut up until I get what I want" methods.

I've also always believed that the treatment at a public hospital, particularly in the event of an emergency, is on par with the quality of service in a private hospital. People say all the time "you wouldn't get better care if you went private than the care I had from the public hospital".

China, your comment makes me think perhaps that is not the case. I've always thought that, for example, a car accident victim would (I think) always be taken to the public hospitals for immediate treatment (hoping they will not be "ramped" and waiting in line in the carpark due to the emergency area being clogged with people who should be seeing a doctor instead of the "free" service at the ER).

How big a problem is it that people who pay for private health insurance insist on not letting on they have private cover and going public? As doctors, do you think those with private cover should be refused treatment in the public system (other than emergency cases where they are taken there by ambulance)?

I know why people do it, because even with private cover, the gap or out of pocket payments are high, but I don't agree with it, and would prefer to see those with private cover made to go "private". I certainly don't think a public patient on a waiting list should be kept waiting longer due to a whinging, "squeaky wheel" private patient pushing them down the queue, and I've seen that happen several times just with this one "friend".

 

[marg4000]

How big a problem is it that people who pay for private health insurance insist on not letting on they have private cover and going public? As doctors, do you think those with private cover should be refused treatment in the public system (other than emergency cases where they are taken there by ambulance)?

I disagree.

We have private hospital insurance, that fortunately has rarely been used.

However, it is not uncommon for people with full private insurance to leave a private hospital with a bill in the thousands of dollars, over $10K in one case for back surgery. Close to $5K out of pocket for the birth of a child is not unusual once all the "extras" are taken into account.

Some people, even with private cover, simply cannot afford this. They pay their taxes like everyone else so should have access to public hospitals if they choose.
Marg

 

[wylie]

I disagree.

We have private hospital insurance, that fortunately has rarely been used.

However, it is not uncommon for people with full private insurance to leave a private hospital with a bill in the thousands of dollars, over $10K in one case for back surgery. Close to $5K out of pocket for the birth of a child is not unusual once all the "extras" are taken into account.

Some people, even with private cover, simply cannot afford this. They pay their taxes like everyone else so should have access to public hospitals if they choose.
Marg

I agree with what you are saying, but why do these people bother paying thousands for private cover if they don't use it?

I know it means extra gap payments and I've paid plenty of out of pocket costs for three babies, and numerous operations. We had plenty of things we could have put that gap payment money into, but it was our choice to go private with our births, and for the other operations, when needed, because we wanted the choice of when we book in, and didn't want to be on the end of a long waiting list. It was our choice. I've always kept it because if I ever need surgery, I can choose my surgeon, and choose the timing, and we've done that.

Personally, I would not want to bump someone off the list who has no choice at all, and cannot afford private cover.

I'm just curious about what doctors think about this subject?

 

[china]

I've always held private health cover. I'm curious to you China and xactly what you both think of patients who hold private cover using the public system? I've never done it, but I know it happens. I have one "friend" who has full private cover and several ongoing health issues. Not only has she refused to admit she has private cover, she has bumped public patients by being a squeaky wheel and I believe some hospital clerical and booking staff have allowed her to jump up the queue rather than have to deal with her and her pushy ways and "clamp on and don't let go and don't shut up until I get what I want" methods.

I've also always believed that the treatment at a public hospital, particularly in the event of an emergency, is on par with the quality of service in a private hospital. People say all the time "you wouldn't get better care if you went private than the care I had from the public hospital".

China, your comment makes me think perhaps that is not the case. I've always thought that, for example, a car accident victim would (I think) always be taken to the public hospitals for immediate treatment (hoping they will not be "ramped" and waiting in line in the carpark due to the emergency area being clogged with people who should be seeing a doctor instead of the "free" service at the ER).

How big a problem is it that people who pay for private health insurance insist on not letting on they have private cover and going public? As doctors, do you think those with private cover should be refused treatment in the public system (other than emergency cases where they are taken there by ambulance)?

I know why people do it, because even with private cover, the gap or out of pocket payments are high, but I don't agree with it, and would prefer to see those with private cover made to go "private". I certainly don't think a public patient on a waiting list should be kept waiting longer due to a whinging, "squeaky wheel" private patient pushing them down the queue, and I've seen that happen several times just with this one "friend".

I think it is actually being the squeaky wheel that allows people to jump queues rather than being insurance status positive or negative.

There are really no benefits from hiding your private insurance status if forced to attend a public health organisation. It is good to have some form of VIP status as there will be subtle differences in quality of care which may often not be apparent to the untrained eye. In our egalitarian society, no government can admit a different class of treatment based on socio-economic grounds. Sure, you may save a few dollars by hiding your insurance status but if you believe that your health and its maintenance to be worth more than all the money in the world then a few dollars should not be a consideration in the process at all. So choosing to be a public patient when you have health insurance is quite a bizarre choice if you value your health care in any way.

 

[xactly]

I agree with what you are saying, but why do these people bother paying thousands for private cover if they don't use it?

Personally, I would not want to bump someone off the list who has no choice at all, and cannot afford private cover.

I'm just curious about what doctors think about this subject?

To me personally and professionally , it doesn't make any difference. All patients get the same treatment.

I think it's individual choice as to whether they exercise their right to private cover or not.

The gap can vary enormously as well. I understand why people go public in the face of some bills from some specialties.