PREMIER Campbell Newman has called on a Queensland hospital to further explain why two doctors were suspended for talking to the media about the handling of an Ebola scare.
THE unnamed doctors were stood down from Cairns Hospital on Monday for speaking out about how infectious disease cases are managed, including the recent case of a nurse suspected of having Ebola.
In a weekend news report, published in The Courier-Mail, the doctors expressed concern about the decision to keep the nurse in a section of the emergency department rather than in isolation in the hospital’s highly infectious diseases unit. She has since been cleared and remains in isolation at home. The decision to suspend the doctors was on Tuesday backed by Health Minister Lawrence Springborg. However Premier Campbell Newman said more details about the decision need to be revealed. “Given that this is a public organisation and public funds are involved, I think it would be good if they were a bit more forthcoming about their decisions and I think they need to be a bit more open about why they’ve made this call,” he said. The Australian Salaried Medical Officers Federation has called for the immediate reinstatement of the doctors. “Doctors should have the right to publicly comment when they believe management has failed to adequately address issues,” Federation President Dr Tony Sara said.