Statement from AMA (NSW) president Dr Kathryn Austin

The latest Bureau of Health Information quarterly hospital performance report (January to March 2025) lays out the dire state of play in NSW public hospitals.

As a doctor working in our public system, it is heartbreaking to see the statistics get worse every quarter because I know that behind every one of those statistics is a patient not getting the care they need or an exhausted doctor trying to meet impossible targets.

There has been intense bitterness in recent months over pay and conditions for doctors. This must be addressed, but this is not the only issue adversely impacting our public hospitals and the care they are able to deliver to patients.

AMA (NSW) has a five-point plan to improve the system for doctors and patients.

1. We need a greater focus on preventive health measures.
The ever-increasing avalanche of patients seeking care and admission to our public hospitals is unsustainable. We must make a greater, long-term commitment to preventive measures, such as a sugar tax, to stem this tide and reduce the burden on the system by burgeoning preventative health issues such as type 2 diabetes, obesity and some cancers. The Special Commission of Inquiry into Healthcare Funding found “more must be done at the state level” in this arena and “properly co-ordinated whole of government action is urgently required” for long term sustainability of the public health system.”

2. We urgently need more funding for public hospitals.
Public hospital budgets are inadequate. This was affirmed in the recent Special Commission of Inquiry into Healthcare Funding report, which found “the current base budgets of local health districts and speciality health networks are no longer sufficient to meet the demand placed on them to continue providing existing services.” The Federal Government only funds 37 per cent of NSW public hospital activity. This should be 50 per cent.

3. We need more consultant positions in public hospitals.
While there are shortages of doctors in some specialities, we still have doctors available and keen to work in our hospitals. We simply need funding to create more positions.

4. We need service planning with more consultant-led surgical services.
Senior doctors have unique expertise in health systems and must be at the forefront of service planning to ensure patients are front of mind in every decision.

5. We need modernised industrial arrangements to attract and retain doctors.
Awards governing doctors’ pay and conditions in NSW are outdated and not fit for purpose. Some have not been updated in almost 20 years. We support the Special Commission’s recommendation that “award reform is both desirable and overdue”. AMA (NSW) is arbitrating in the Industrial Relations Commission this year for modernised working conditions for visiting medical officers to help make the public health system more attractive for doctors to join and stay.