Dentists drill councils over water fluoridation decay

By Dr Karin Alexander* In the 1930s, American scientists and public health researchers made a simple, but profoundly important discovery. People living in towns with around one part per million of fluoride found naturally in their drinking water had much less tooth decay that people whose drinking water contained lower levels of fluoride. All water […]

Battle looms over Defence health services

[Editor’s Note: Both Medibank Health Service and the Department of Defence dispute and reject the assertions made by the Australian Medical Association in this article, which was originally published in the October-November issue of Government News. Please read the responses from MHS and the Department] By Dr Steve Hambleton* One of the first issues that […]

Queensland doctor dispute goes federal

By Julian Bajkowski The industrial relations row over moves by the Queensland government to force the state’s doctors onto individual workplace contracts has escalated to a national level after the Australian Medical Association’s (AMA) Federal Council formally condemned the move as draconian and unfair. The entry of the AMA’s national arm into the dispute is […]

Springborg dials-up a second opinion on hospital award dispute

By Paul Hemsley A controversial plan to try and move Queensland’s entire public hospital senior medical staff onto individual workplace contracts by 1st July 2014 is continuing to generate indigestion after the state’s Health Minister Lawrence Springborg claimed the new deal had “a tick of approval” from Visiting Medical Officers. As new the draft contract […]

eHealth examination probes for private sector buy-in

By Julian Bajkowski The private sector and medical providers could soon have a much bigger say in how Australia’s ailing efforts to create a national system of electronic health and medical records unfolds. The Abbott government has revealed it now wants substantial input on what non-government providers can contribute to make eHealth a reality after […]

Poor prognosis for Victorian eHealth

By Julian Bajkowski Australia’s troubled eHealth sector has been handed yet another negative appraisal after the Victorian Auditor General released a report cited “poor planning and an inadequate understanding of the complex requirements to design and implement clinical ICT systems” as the reasons for the state’s major online medical upgrade failing to deliver what it […]

Doctors slam resuscitation of ‘Workchoices-style’ hospital contracts

By Paul Hemsley The Australian Medical Association (AMA) has slammed the Queensland government’s decision to move all of its public hospital Senior Medical Officers to individual contracts from 1st July 2014. The peak doctor’s group has warned that the state government’s decision will have “dramatic” consequences on medical workforce numbers and could force doctors to […]

Doctors and DoHA hold eHealth crisis talks

By Julian Bajkowski The Australian Medical Association (AMA) has held crisis talks with the head of the federal Department of Health and Ageing, Professor Jane Halton, over the unprecedented walkout of clinical advisors from the nation’s decade long $1 billion effort to build a functional eHealth system. Held on Tuesday, the meeting followed calls by […]

Doctors ready to pull plug on eHealth

By Julian Bajkowski Australia’s long and troubled efforts to create a functioning national system of electronic health and medical records system is once more close to collapse. The Australian Medical Association has expressed serious concerns over clinician input into the project following the shock resignation of highly respected clinical representative Dr Mukesh Haikerwal from the […]

Doctors demand smaller window for child falls

By Julian Bajkowski The Australian Medical Association has taken the New South Wales government to task over the alarming number of children being seriously injured after falling out of windows and from balconies because of poor building safety design. In a move certain to have big repercussions for local government planning and development guidelines, the […]

Regions stretched to find doctors

By Paul Hemsley Try making an appointment with a doctor in country Australia and there’s a good chance you’ll be in for either a long wait or a long drive. Often it’s both. As Australia grasps the social and economic realities of an ageing population, a pressing issue for those outside larger cities is access […]

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