AMAQ President signs new medical contract

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#AMAQ President signs new medical contract #qldpol #keepourdoctors

Dr Christian Rowan, President of the Australian Medical Association Queensland (AMAQ), has become one of the first doctors to agree to a new medical contract.

Dr Rowan, an addiction medicine specialist, joined other Darling Downs Hospital and Health Service colleagues over the weekend to sign one of the new doctor contracts.

Acting Director-General Queensland Health Dr Michael Cleary said it was a milestone in the transition to the new contracts.

“I am pleased senior doctors across different hospital and health services (HHSs) are taking the opportunity to sign contracts so early in this process,” he said.

“HHSs were only provided with the final contract frameworks a few weeks ago and I expected many would be finalising key performance indicators and other arrangements with individual doctors or specialty groups.”

Dr Cleary said to date, a total of nine doctors had been confirmed as signing a contract on the Darling Downs and Metro South Hospital and Health Services.

Dr Peter Bristow, Darling Downs Hospital and Health Service Chief Executive said  the Darling Downs HHS was happy that the process of doctors signing their contracts had begun.

“Doctors are a critical leadership group within our health service and we respect them for their work. Further, we need doctors, both in Toowoomba and the other 19 hospitals for which we are responsible,” he said.

“We always try and take a reasonable approach to our doctors and their concerns so we can provide the best possible health services. “The common ground here is that we all believe in better patient care and these contracts will enable us to move toward that goal.”

Dr Cleary said having senior doctors ‘sign up’ so early was a huge show of confidence in the contract system. “It also shows that individual circumstances, and other material matters can be quickly resolved once individual discussions commence.”

The Department of Health met with senior doctor representatives on more than 30 occasions and made numerous amendments based on these consultations before finalising the contract framework.

“More than 800 senior doctors across the state also took the opportunity to provide feedback on the draft contract framework and I thank them for taking the time to assist in this process,” Dr Cleary said.

Individual contracts for senior doctors will take effect from 7 July 2014.

Source: Qld Health