“Senior Doctors Can’t Guarantee Patient Safety; Urgent Government Action Needed”
“Senior doctors can’t guarantee patient safety in public hospitals if urgent government action is not taken to sort out the resident (junior) doctor shortage crisis that has led to a wave of strikes throughout the country,” said Mr Ian Powell, Executive Director of the Association of Salaried Medical Specialists, today.

Mr Powell was reporting the unanimous assessment of the Association’s National Executive that met in Wellington today. Representatives attend from throughout the country. The shortage crisis was the major issue discussed.

“The work that resident doctors do at the frontline of medical care can’t be done by any one else as well and as safely. The work of senior doctors will also be severely compromised because they depend on the support of their resident doctor colleagues.”

“Senior doctors will not be able to fill the gaps and do the essential work of resident doctors. This means that public hospitals will become unsafe.”

“If there was ever a case for government intervention to ensure a workable solution it was now. No-one else can do it,” concluded Mr Powell.

Ian Powell
EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR

ends

© Scoop Media

Gordon Campbell: On The Government’s Smokefree Laws Debacle

The most charitable explanation for National’s behaviour over the smokefree legislation is that they have dutifully fulfilled the wishes of the Big Tobacco lobby and then cast around – incompetently, as it turns out - for excuses that might sell this health policy U-turn to the public. The less charitable view is that the government was being deliberately misleading. Are we to think Prime Minister Christopher Luxon is a fool, or a liar? It seems rather early on in his term of office to be facing that unpleasant choice. Yet when Luxon (and senior MP Chris Bishop) tried to defend the indefensible with the same wildly inaccurate claim, there are not a lot of positive explanations left on the table.... More