Rural Doctors� Association of South Australia Inc - DOC

							MEDIA RELEASE 3rd NOVEMBER 2006                                                                   President:
                                                                                                  Dr Peter Rischbieth
                                                                                                  Ph: 08 8532 2322
                                                                                                  Ah: 08 8339 5373

     Rural doctors welcome positive                                                               Fax: 08 8531 2331
                                                                                                  Mobile: 0408 813143
                                                                                                  Email:
         discussions in Whyalla                                                                   peter.rischbieth@bridgeclinic.com.au


                                                                                                  President Elect:
The Rural Doctors Association of South Australia (RDASA) has welcomed a decision                  Dr Steve Holmes
by doctors on the after-hours roster at Whyalla Hospital to continue their                        Ph: 08 8842 1000
involvement in providing accident and emergency (A&E) services to the hospital’s                  Fax: 08 8842 1005
A&E Department.                                                                                   Mobile: 0428 421000
                                                                                                  Email: drsholmes@bigpond.com
The doctors had taken their concerns about the sustainability of the roster to the CEO of
Whyalla Hospital and had also met with George Beltchev, Director of Country Health SA
                                                                                          Vice President:
and Dr Peter Rischbieth, President of RDASA and Dr Peter Joyner , Chief Consultant in
                                                                                          Dr David Rosenthal
A &E to discuss the need for measures to help retain this important medical service for
                                                                                          Ph: 08 8586 4111
Whyalla and its surrounding region.
                                                                                                  Ah: 08 8586 6048
“The workload of Whyalla’s on-call doctors has increased considerably in recent months, as        Fax: 08 8586 4067
the number of doctors on the after-hours roster diminished and the hospital lost the              Mobile: 0418 858069
services of its resident physician and medical registrar” Dr Rischbieth said.                     Email:
                                                                                                  david.rosenthal@flinders.edu.au
“The remaining doctors and I recently had discussions with Whyalla Hospital’s
administration regarding the need to ensure that sustainable arrangements are in place for        Treasurer:
providing emergency services at the hospital, given the additional demands of providing           Dr George Kokar
clinical services at their own practices and the difficulties they have had in attracting other   Ph: 08 8852 1002
doctors to Whyalla.                                                                               Ah: 08 8852 1414
                                                                                                  Fax: 08 8852 1187
“Key issues discussed included the ongoing problems of fatigue for the doctors still              Email: gkokar@ymp.yorke.net.au
providing on-call A&E services at Whyalla Hospital, and the ability of these doctors to then
front up for a busy day at their practice after an equally busy night on-call.               Secretariat:
                                                                                                  Ms Cassandra McNeil
“We also discussed the impediments to recruiting more doctors to rural South Australia, the       PO Box 846 CLARE SA 5453
impact that different regional classifications can have on the support measures available to      Ph: 08 8842 4252
doctors in particular SA towns, the need to classify more SA towns and regions as areas of        Fax: 08 8842 4263
medical workforce shortage and workforce need, and the complex business structures
                                                                                                  Email: info@rdasa.com.au
involved in setting up a medical practice in rural South Australia.

“The doctors have now agreed to enter into further discussions with Whyalla Hospital’s
administration as to how best to service the A&E Department into the future.

“It is essential that a highly skilled and competent medical workforce is available for the
Whyalla community and surrounding areas, and that the opportunities for teaching, training
and mentoring junior doctors and medical students are retained at South Australia’s largest
regional hospital.

“RDASA looks forward to working with the SA Government, Country Health SA, Whyalla
Hospital’s administration and Whyalla’s doctors to ensure a sustainable future for medical
services in the region and in other areas of rural South Australia .”

          RDASA President, Dr Peter Rischbieth, is available for interview on
                      tel: (08) 8532 2322 bh or 0408 813 143.

                                                                                                  www.rdasa.com.au
                                                                                                  ABN: 90 077 896 368