12 NEWS
Maximise † patients ’ chances of quit smoking success
12 NEWS
11 OCTOBER 2024 ausdoc . com . au
Professor Simon Willcock
Honorary professor of general practice and primary care , Macquarie University , Sydney , NSW .
SO , Australian Doctor is turning 40 ! In 1984 , I was wondering if I should listen to the naysayers , who warned me that GPs were the Neanderthals of the medical ecosystem , doomed for extinction .
Australian Doctor gave a voice to those of us who believed in primary care underpinning an accessible health system for all Australians .
Fast-forward 20 years to my appointment as chair of General Practice Education and Training — an entity representing a forced partnership between various medical groups , each with its own strident ( and often discordant ) voice . In my dealings with Australian Doctor , I remember the kindness of its team
It was a platform to communicate with colleagues the importance of general practice and its future .
Looking back now , the following decade was a halcyon time for the specialty , with governments of all persuasions invested in nurturing a GP workforce fit for purpose .
Sadly , it only took Peter Dutton ’ s brief tenure in the health portfolio to end it , cancelling the initiatives ( those exposing junior doctors to real-world general practice ) that were succeeding .
Thank you , Australian Doctor for your commitment to the cause of general practice . We need your support now more than ever !
Home fetal dopplers cancelled
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Mohana Basu THE TGA has cancelled all home-use fetal dopplers left on the Australian Register of Therapeutic Goods , warning that the devices may give false reassurances to pregnant women .
The watchdog ’ s safety review started in 2022 after obstetric services reported three stillbirths and one early neonatal death when patients were falsely reassured by at-home dopplers .
Since then , the sponsors of five devices have voluntarily deregistered them and the TGA has cancelled the other four .
However , it is not a blanket ban : companies may still register devices in the future if they provide sufficient evidence of their safety .
Nor has the TGA recalled any of the devices in use , which means second-hand devices can be resold .
Dr Scott White , chair of the RANZCOG Women ’ s Health Committee , said the college had recommended against the use of home dopplers to detect fetal heartbeat since 2009 .
“ Sometimes , [ people have bought them after having had ] bad experiences before and want the reassurance of knowing that their baby is still alive .”
But in some cases , patients became worried when they could not pick up a fetal heartbeat at home and presented to doctors “ when everything was fine ”.
“ The most serious concern is that people have been worried about the lack of fetal movement , used the devices , assumed they could hear the baby ’ s heartbeat then not sought medical help for a more comprehensive review ,” Dr White said .