Physicians and paediatricians call for national health reform to address workforce shortages that leave patients waiting and doctors burnt out
21 December 2022
The Royal Australasian College of Physicians (RACP) says that nation-wide health reform is required to address the strain on hospital emergency departments and long specialist wait times in states like New South Wales and Victoria.
The College says reports of 1.5 million people in NSW presenting to emergency departments with non-urgent problems is just another symptom of the health system in crisis.
RACP President and Paediatrician Dr Jacqueline Small says “Long wait times and overflowing emergency departments are not isolated to one or two states in Australia. They are a sign of the system in need of urgent and ongoing reform.
“This is a national crisis that has been going on for years where there is a severe workforce shortage of health care workers, health professionals are facing extreme burn out, and patients are waiting months to be seen by specialists.
The RACP says that Australia needs major health reform to address three key areas:
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Staffing levels – by improving workforce modelling and providing wellbeing-promoting, flexible working arrangements for healthcare workers
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Better models of care – by investing in well-designed, integrated and funded community-based care that reduces the demand on emergency departments and hospitals
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Investment in prevention – by actioning the commitment to invest 5% of healthcare expenditure in preventive care by 2030, including through the 2023 Budget.
“Increasing funding for all levels of the healthcare sector is necessary, but the current crisis will not be solved by money alone. We clearly need policy reform at a national level.
“This problem is bigger than one jurisdiction. Addressing the pressures on the system needs to transcend the state and federal boundaries.