Australian Doctor 3rd November 2023 3rd Nov 23 | Page 7

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NEWS 7

‘ Secretive ’ abortion push riles doctors

Heather Saxena A NEW Queensland Government plan
to allow registered nurses to prescribe MS-2 Step is an “ ad hoc and opaque ” attempt to expand their scope of practice , doctors say .
In a scathing response to the proposal , AMA Queensland said it risked patient safety and ignored a federal report on reproductive health .
Earlier this year , the Senate Community Affairs Reference Committee recommended MS-2 Step prescribing rights for registered midwives , nurse
practitioners and Aboriginal health workers .
“ It is highly concerning that Queensland Health is proposing expansion beyond that recommended by the Senate Committee ,” said AMA Queensland CEO Dr Brett Dale ( PhD ).
“ This cannot be justified , lacks evidence and must not be further progressed .”
His submission said the State Government should wait for the results of the federal Department of Health and Aged Care ’ s scope of practice review ,
due in October next year , before introducing the change .
It alleged the Queensland Government had taken a “ secretive approach ”, giving just one working week to respond to its 30-page consultation paper on the plan .
And even then , the paper was only sent to “ targeted government and external stakeholders ”, the AMA said .
“ It is unacceptable that Queensland Health persists with this targeted and secretive approach to legislative amendments and does
not act with transparency and accountability by publishing all such proposals .”
However , GP abortion prescriber and Australian Doctor columnist Dr Heather McNamee said registered nurses were well placed to prescribe MS-2 Step .
“ Medical termination of pregnancy and the prescribing of MS-2 Step is a very safe protocol-driven procedure based on years of research and best practice guidelines ,” she said .
Dr Heather McNamee .

‘ End sevenday lock on test results ’

Antony Scholefield HEALTH officials will weigh up whether pathology and imaging results in the My Health Record should still be “ locked ” from patient access in the first week after they are uploaded .
The seven-day delay was introduced back in 2014 so that patients were less likely to look at results on their own before a doctor had explained them .
There are a few exceptions — such as tests for respiratory illnesses , including COVID- 19 , and results for HbA1c and INR tests .
However , Minister for Health and Aged Care Mark Butler said earlier this year that the delay was “ a barrier to good clinical practice [ and caused ] untold frustration for Australians ”.
He called for it to be scrapped in all but exceptional circumstances .
The health department opened a consultation on potential changes in September , where it argued that immediate access to imaging and pathology reports would “ empower consumers to better manage their own health and protect others in the community ”.
The consultation paper cited evidence from the US Open Notes initiative , which gives patients complete access to doctors ’ notes about them .
“ There is some evidence that consumers prefer immediate access even when they receive non-normal results ,” it said .
“ Other studies have reported that transparent medical records do not seem to greatly increase consumers ’ health-related worry .”
However , the department acknowledged that “ some healthcare providers have raised concerns about how immediate access to pathology notes might affect patient wellbeing ”.
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