Senior doctors cautious... - Financial Unions

Two senior doctors are offering cautious, albeit qualified, support for some of the concepts floated by Professor Lester Levy, the new Health Commissioner.

The longtime health administrator was solely appointed to take over from the Health NZ Te Whatu Ora Board on July 22.

Levy has since announced a fresh range of reforms that he believes will shorten surgical wait times, improve access to GPs and health services nationwide, and address New Zealand's chronic shortage of frontline staff.

1News asked Auckland trauma specialist Ian Civil and General Practice NZ Chair, Dr Bryan Betty, for their views on the proposed changes and how they will be received.

Civil said he thinks senior clinicians will approve of the proposal to increase clinical involvement and decision-making in hospitals.

"I think clinical staff will really welcome the idea that they're going to get closer to decision making, and they'll become more engaged with delivery of health care," said Civil.

(Source: 1News)

Levy said he intends to "create a level of clinical involvement and involvement in decision-making that has never yet been seen in New Zealand".

Prior to the now-defunct reforms introduced in July 2022, senior clinicians were involved in departmental decisions like hiring staff and replacing equipment.

But those decisions were removed and specialists have told 1News they felt devalued under the previous reforms and often faced long waits for sign off.

"I think there are currently some stresses in the workforce," Ian Civil said. "But, yes, people are very keen to be involved in making the delivery of healthcare better."

Civil said he believes surgeons will also support the Commissioner's proposal to increase waitlist surgery operations, although the clinician says other factors often influence whether surgery goes ahead.

"As a surgeon, I can confidently say surgeons always want to do one extra case on their operating list," Civil said.

"But there are some barriers to that. One is the nursing staffing, whether there are enough nurses, whether they're taken away to do work in other acute theatres, whether there are beds in the hospital for patients to actually be in hospital."

Improving access to primary health care is also a priority for Professor Levy who says more GPs and better access to GP care nationwide would reduce hospital admissions.

Dr Bryan Betty said New Zealand has long been subject to doctor shortages in primary care, and more locally trained doctors are urgently needed.

He believes all GP practices and primary health organisations are up to the challenge of addressing problems with the new Commissioner.

There's one caveat, though - the reform-wary sector wants to see a detailed plan.

"We have to wait and see what this really looks like going forward," Betty said.

"Either way, whatever we do here, we just need to do it. We need to think ahead, have a strategy in place and make sure it happens."

Levy said he has already had initial talks with primary care and believes a radical new approach to the current system is needed.

Exactly what that looks like may be revealed soon.

"We need to pick up the cadence and we have to do everything much more quickly."

A focus on delivery is also on the minds of officials in Whangarei after incorrect media reports on Friday that the Emergency Department (ED) had closed due to too many patients.

"Sadly I think the New Zealand health system is unwell with some parts of it potentially in crisis and this is unfortunate," Professor Lester Levy told 1News' Nicole Bremner. (Source: 1News)

Te Whatu Ora Health NZ later confirmed the hospital had remained open and was fully operational despite a spike in patients around midday.

Health Minister Shane Reti urged anyone concerned about their health or that of a whanau member to always go to the nearest ED.