Dear Candidate,
As a member of the NZRDA it will be of no surprise to you that I have concerns about the DHBs' collective performance with respect to retention of resident doctors in permanent employment within both Northland and New Zealand. The present RMO employment contract negotiations are once again, despite our best efforts, suffering from delays and increasing acrimony. This does nothing for the morale of the RMOs working at Whangarei Hospital. Not to mention the recent proposal for a Northern Region Shared Service Organisation, placing RMOs working in Whangarei at the mercy of ARRMOS (the RMO unit who has a reputation amongst RMOs of being one of the worst RMO units in this country!). We do not want our RMO vacancy list at Whangarei Hospital to risk looking like the current vacancy list Auckland has, nor do we want the current conditions RMOs enjoy at Whangarei Hospital to be at risk due to this amalgamation of units. Recruitment and retention of RMOs in Whangarei will suffer.
Many RMOs already in Australia have commented that they will not return to New Zealand so long as this sort of attitude from our Health Boards towards this critical present and future workforce remains.
What is your opinion of the medical workforce crisis both locally and nationally, and what steps, as DHB board member, will you take to address this pressing issue? Also, what are your views on the proposal of a Northern Region Shared Service Organisation with respect to RMOs?
Noho ora mai,
Dr. Sara Moeke
NZRDA Local Delegate (Whangarei)
Candidate Answers
Candidate
Answer
Awaiting response
Hi Sara.
Unfortunately as a first time candidate I am not in a position to know what the collective bargaining position is or to what level the debate has engaged with both parties. I am also not in a postion to present any information on RMO\'s or Arrmos\'s as this will be priviledged debate. I did read the article in the NZ Herald whereby the CEO of Northland District Health Board took a very strong position on this which of course only presented one side of the debate.
I am aware through the media that we struggle to retain our skilled medical staff in New Zealand and it would appear that overseas appointments can offer both better pay and working conditions. This clearly needs to be balanced.
Until such time as I have had the opportunity to be involved in the debate I can offer you no fixed outcomes other that I am aware of the issue and consider it to be one of the highest priorties that needs to be addressed.
Sorry I cannot offer you any more informed comment at this time.
Regards
Ann
Kia ora Sara,
Nga mihi nui ki a koe me tou Kaimahi RMO i roto i te hohipera nei. E tautoko ahau to ratou mahi nuinui mo nga turoro, nga whanau o Taitokerau. Tena koutou katoa.
With 25 years experience as a union member and in my last employement a representative on a union group and a member of the organisations council, I can fully understand the impact of contract negotiations on the morale of frontline staff and the influence that governance has (very little), besides supporting and encouraging a CE to do his or her best to resolve the issues in a timely, and fair manner.
It is my understanding from a radio announcement that I heard almost 3 weeks ago, that the CE of the NDHB was empathetic with the difficulties and that progress was being made into reviewing the long hours that RMO\'s work.
My understaning of ARRMOS is limited to the efforts that I made to follow up via the link that I have provided below.
http://www.aucklanddoctors.co.nz/?gclid=CLKA6IWVtaQCFUMEHAodDjd7zw
It is my understanding ,Sara, that the amalgamation of the RMO\'s at Whangarei hospital with Auckland is not influenced by the DHB. Through my 25 years as a union member, it was the members who determined amalgamation. I personally experienced this when our Education union ASTE was amalgamated with TEU. It was only after a long period of consultation and debate with members nationally did we through a vote decide to change.
I have a favourite saying and that is \'be the change you want in the world\'-Mandela. Change or transformation is a natural part of our life. And I can feel your commitment to ensuring that RMO\'s are looked after; treated fairly, professionally, timely and well resourced and supported. Arohamai.
In regards to workforce development- Recruitment, Retention, Professional Development, Mentoring and \'creating a happy work enviornment\', I am 100% behind the initiatives that the present board has put in place to promote Health and retain staff.Below is a link to the present employment vacancies at NDHB.
http://www.northlanddhb.org.nz/careers/medical/
I am a the coordinator for Programme Incubator. A programme that the Board supports in regards to promoting the health services in schools. You can access this link to find out more about the this award winning programme. www.incubator.co.nz or access the Hawkes Bay website.
Sara, I thank-you for the opportunity to respond to your concerns and I wish you and your colleagues all the best with these negotiations. I know how disheartening it can be, I recall a time when as educators within a tertiary organisation we were being offered 0%. As challenging as it was we tried to protect our students from these issues. I trust at this time that you are all doing your best to continue to provide excellent care for our patients in our Northland hospitals, despite the challenges.
Naku noa na
Huria Iri
