The findings from the Royal Commission into Misconduct in the Banking, Superannuation and Financial Services Industry are mind-boggling. The public’s trust in our financial industry is very much eroded to, arguably, an all-time low, following the exposure of so many acts of misconduct. The Royal Commission also found deficiencies within the regulatory bodies in stopping many types of misconduct, and is now calling for compensation, crackdowns and an overhaul of the financial regulators.
The similarities with failures at the hands of Australia’s medical regulators is striking however, public knowledge of these failures is lacking, and it is AHReform’s intention to work on a strategy to heighten public awareness and to create a demand for urgent government reforms, viz. through a Royal Commission.
It is AHReform’s belief that the ill effects of misconduct and bullying in the healthcare industry has gone far enough to the extent that, unless major changes occur, patients will continue to be adversely compromised as a result of an unsafe working environment that allows professional bullying resulting in adverse mental and physical well-being and ruining their careers and livelihoods. This major reason alone, in our opinion, warrants a Royal Commission on the health industry.
The widely publicized recent news on how Dr Yumiko Kadota was exploited and bullied to the point of mental and physical exhaustion, and then had to quit the medical profession, can only excite support, compassion and empathy to her, by ordinary Australians. We have lost a healer.
A triathlete and aspiring surgical trainee, Dr Yumiko Kadota was forced to work extraordinarily long hours and be on-call for seven days straight in a Sydney-hospital. Such exhaustion could very well have put the health and safety of patients under her care, at serious risk. What if she had made an error and a patient had been maimed or killed? Would she have been punished for medical negligence and substandard performance, or would she have received help and support as a victim of an endemic bullying culture which includes a form of ‘initiation’? Unless something is done to fix this problem, tragic outcomes may occur anytime, said a nurse whistleblower.
The comment (by Dr A Pun) below has been published by the SMH blog: Sydney hospital faces trainee ban over junior doctor scandal by Kate Aubusson on 6 February 2019
Dr Yumiko Kadota gave up her ambitions of becoming a reconstructive surgeon after being worked to breaking point at Bankstown Hospital is indeed a recurring symptom of a broken down public health system. What a waste of human resources and not to mention the stress and trauma this young doctor had to go through. The inability of the public health system to provide a safe environment for those who care for the sick together with unpleasant “Sham Peer Review” processes is really prevalent not only NSW but Australia wide. In the view of the newly formed Australian Health Reform Association Inc (AHReform), a Royal Commission is a necessary tool to reform and reconstruct public health administration and regulatory bodies – to ensure the best healthcare is available to all Australians.
What the public knows is only the tip of the iceberg and such situations are prevalent in the medical profession. It is also well-established that multiple levels of systemic errors and failures contribute to it and is like the swiss-cheese model, eventually resulting in a tragedy which the front-line doctors and nurses are usually made to take the blame for.
The comments made by one health regulator during his oral submission in the Australian Senate Committee Inquiry in November 2016 where he strenuously defended the regulator's action as non-punitive, has generated widespread disbelief among the health and legal professionals including some Senators. The comment was unable to explain why so many healthcare professionals were victimized to the brink of suicide. The failure of the regulators to address the bullying tactics used by hospital administrators and the sham peer review by the bullies to subdue, discredit and demoralise caring doctors and nurses is indeed very worrying.
The lack of proposed reforms from the health regulators would mean that swift and effective changes would not be forthcoming for the foreseeable future. Hence, we wish to raise public awareness of this issue and seek public support through this petition, in urging the government to set up a Royal Commission on this matter.
The fallout of healthcare bullying affects all of us, and AHReform would like to hear your case or opinion, whether you are a doctor, a nurse, an allied health professional or a member of the public. Be assured that we are always open to constructive feedback, insight, and suggestions from our members and supporters. Signing this petition here matters to all of us who want to stop this bullying culture from harming our healthcare practitioners and health consumers alike.
AHReform can be contacted via email: australianhealthreformgroup@gmail.com
From the President and on behalf of the AHReform Board