COMMUNICATIONS

Ashburton Hospital opts for Medical Officer workforce

Medical staffing at Ashburton Hospital will be more stable from the end of February thanks to an initiative replacing House Surgeons with more senior medical practitioners known as Medical Officers.

“While Ashburton has been well served by House Surgeons over the years, the advantages for us in employing Medical Officers are that they will bring more experience to a rural setting and provide more stability and continuity of staffing,” said Garth Bateup Canterbury District Health Board’s General Manager Rural Health Services.

“Over the past two years, a number of House Surgeons have been employed on a locum basis via several agencies in order to maintain our junior medical staffing complement at Ashburton. At times there have been gaps in the numbers available, which has made staffing difficult,” he said. “There is an increasing demand for a Medical Officer workforce at hospitals similar to Ashburton throughout New Zealand.”

During 2007, Ashburton Hospital will be working to make permanent appointments to Medical Officer positions. In the meantime, an arrangement has been made for one agency to manage locum staffing requirements during the next twelve months.

“The agency we are working with will endeavour to have longer term locum appointments for six to twelve months to ensure continuity of patient care and services, while we progress permanent appointments.”

Replacement of Ashburton’s current House Surgeon workforce with Medical Officers is part of the Canterbury District Health Board’s Ashburton Model of Care. “Its implementation will mean we will be able to progress some other significant components of the Model of Care such as supporting after hours cover in primary care,” Mr Bateup said.

ENDS