Let your babies grow up to be doctors

Let your babies grow up to be doctors

We know how hard doctors’ lives can be – the stressors you face that are compounded by a system that is struggling to cope with increasing pressure. That’s why our job is to support you, individually and collectively. We’re here to make your lives easier.

IN MY MANY YEARS with AMA (NSW), I have heard doctors say that they actively discourage their children from becoming a doctor. It’s a view I have not ever agreed with – frankly, at this stage with my children, I will be happy with any form of endeavour. I recognise that there are challenges in many ways of making a living. However, as threats to the medical profession seem to rise, I increasingly understand the hesitation.

It is for this reason that I am proud that this edition of The NSW Doctor is directly focused on your health and wellbeing. Putting your health and wellbeing in the spotlight is necessary so that you can build a rewarding career, and an element of that is knowing where to find support when things go wrong.

Membership of the AMA is an important investment. We know it is an investment that comes after the list of the compulsory spends but it’s still a valuable one. The AMA is the only group who are responsible for standing up for the whole profession. Our role is to highlight why doctors should be valued and why they are central to patient care.

Membership of the AMA also gives you access to incredible expertise. Our Director of Workplace Relations, Dominique Egan brings 20 years as a partner in leading law firms. She has been there for the negotiation of critical decisions; she raised the alarm and ran the campaign on payroll tax which has now been taken up widely by other organisations across the country. She is the person I always call when I have a difficult problem and she, and the team of experts she leads, are available to our members as part of their membership. What makes Dominique and her amazing team different is that not only are they experts, but they also understand, and they listen. Many of the calls they take end with doctors saying, “thanks, I don’t need to do anything now, I am just glad someone cares.” We take calls after hours and Dominque and her team always care. It’s a service that makes me proud.

In addition to expert advice, in this edition, thanks to our impressive Director of Membership Engagement and Commercial Partnerships, Gary White, we feature amazing deals just for doctors. Gary has been rebuilding our commercial partnerships and there will be so many more to come as we find the best deals and the best businesses. What we ask of our commercial partners is that they understand the value of doctors and that they put offers forward that make doctors’ lives easier.

Finally, this edition marks the end of an era for AMA (NSW) as we farewell the wonderful Andrea Cornish, Manager of Communications and Policy, and Editor of The NSW Doctor. Andrea has been an extraordinary force in AMA (NSW). She has driven campaigns from the heart-wrenching “Share Your Story” domestic violence campaign to recent campaigns around payroll tax and the Lismore floods. She also produces consistently exceptional content in The NSW Doctor.

So, my hope to our members and our non-members is that in this edition, you celebrate the amazing profession you are part of, with all its challenges and imperfections.