Quality health care is what counts

Friday, 31 May 2002, 6:19 pm
Press Release: New Zealand Council of Trade Unions

MEDIA RELEASE

31 May 2002

Quality health care is what counts

The Council of Trade Unions supports the Minister of Health's removal of mandatory reporting from the Health Practitioners' Competence Assurance Bill.

"Health workers, like other members of the public, strongly support measures
that increase levels of patient safety and the quality of health care," said CTU president Ross Wilson.

“But, while some groups have thought mandatory reporting would help achieve this goal, workplace experience and research both show that this is unlikely.”

Ross Wilson said that a work environment that encourages open discussion of issues, including mistakes, was much more effective.

“Mandatory reporting would have discouraged health workers from talking to each other about problems, and working together to solve them," he said.

"This Bill now focuses on the most important issue - improving the quality
of health care for us all.

“The CTU hopes that other groups will also take the opportunity offered by the Select Committee process to work towards this goal.”

Ross Wilson said that mandatory reporting was likely to be unworkable on a
practical level, and could cut across well-established workers' rights
during disciplinary processes.

ENDS

© Scoop Media

New Zealand Council of Trade Unions

Te Kauae Kaimahi

The New Zealand Council of Trade Unions Te Kauae Kaimahi brings together over 350,000 New Zealand union members in 40 affiliated unions. We are the united voice for working people and their families in New Zealand.

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