Doctors ‘optimistic’ about talks with Health Minister Lawrence Springborg over individual work contracts #qldpol #smoqld #keepourdoctors
Doctors and Queensland Health Minister Lawrence Springborg say they have made a good start in resolving their feud over individual work contracts after a meeting last night.
Senior medical officers have threatened mass resignations over what they say are unfair conditions in the new contracts.
Both sides met last night to discuss the new individual work contracts.
Australian Medical Association (AMA) president Dr Steve Hambleton says doctors have “six or seven” key concerns.
“Our meeting tonight wasn’t to actually do a deal on those. but to reiterate that we need a process to deliver an outcome,” he said.
“What we got tonight was an assurance from the Minister.”
AMA Queensland president-elect Dr Shaun Rudd says the meeting went some way towards addressing those issues.
“There’s no result as yet – we have to admit that,” he said.
“However, the process is underway and hopefully that will maybe calm a few people down.”
Intensive care specialist Dr John Fraser was also at the crisis meeting with Mr Springborg last night.
Dr Fraser says he is “optimistic but not confident” the talks with the Minister will lead to an agreement on the contracts.
“It’s not completely scrap and start all over, but there are substantial concerns that we face,” he said.
“The Minister and his team listened sensibly to it.
“A number of those – we reached a degree of consensus that we can move forward on this.”
Mr Springborg says the contracts will not be rewritten, but he is prepared to talk through the major sticking points.
“We’ve now actually agreed on a pathway to address what are basically six issues,” he said.
“If we can move through good policy, procedures, implementation and safeguards, I think we can address a lot of those things.
“We’re hoping to be able to work through those fairly intensively and to be able to conclude them fairly quickly.
“The important thing, of course, is that the basis of the contracts stay intact.”
The talks will resume on Monday.
Source: ABC News