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Medical Board given new ‘ public interest ’ powers
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JOCELYN WRIGHT AN immunisation expert has backed Minister for Health Greg Hunt ’ s call to make flu jabs mandatory for nursing home staff , following a spate of fatal outbreaks .
Professor Robert Booy of the National Centre for Immunisation Research and
Surveillance says Australia should be following the mandatory approach taken in the US .
“ To have , on average , only 50 % vaccine uptake tells you that voluntary approaches don ’ t work . Mandatory approaches are used in the US and they get over 95 %
RACHEL WORSLEY THE Medical Board of Australia has been given new powers to immediately suspend or impose conditions on doctors even if they are not an immediate threat to patient safety .
The powers allow the watchdog to take swift action against any doctor on the grounds of ‘ public interest ’.
However , the term ‘ public interest ’ has not been given a specific definition in the legislative amendments that were passed in the Queensland Parliament last week .
The only example cited by the amendments is when a doctor is charged with a serious criminal offence unrelated to their practice for which “ immediate action is required to be taken to maintain public confidence in the provision of services by health practitioners ”.
uptake ,” he said .
Last week , Mr Hunt asked the Chief Medical Officer , Professor Brendan Murphy , to consider how best to boost vaccination rates among staff working in aged care , including making the flu vaccine compulsory .
His request followed reports
AHPRA CEO Martin Fletcher says the changes will mean ‘ extra protection for the public ’.
Mandatory aged care flu vax backed
of a record 105,000 cases of flu nationally , and 14 nursing home deaths in Victoria and Tasmania . The Communicable Diseases Network Australia recommends that residential aged care facilities arrange for all staff have flu vaccination each year before the start of the flu season .
The change is significant . Under the existing law , the Medical Board of Australia can only take immediate action if the doctor or medical student ’ s conduct , performance or health poses a “ serious risk ” that requires immediate intervention to protect public health or safety .
The amendment , following its passage through the Queensland Parliament , will apply in all states and territories except WA and SA , which must pass their own laws to reflect the changes .
In a statement , AHPRA CEO Martin Fletcher said he was confident the changes would mean “ extra protection for the public ”.
“ The changes will strengthen our management of notifications so we can better meet community expectations of regulation to ensure patient safety ,” he said .
The new powers will also apply to all other health professions regulated by AHPRA .
Other changes to the National Law include the national registration of paramedics , which is expected to start in 2018 .
Meanwhile , the medical board has also raised its annual registration fee to $ 742 .
The last financial year was the first since AHPRA began that fees were not increased , remaining frozen on $ 724 . The fresh hike is an increase of 2 %.
There have been 14 nursing home flu deaths this season .
Prepare to be exposed
Prepare to be exposed
to new infections . to new infections .
2 | Australian Doctor | 15 September 2017 www . australiandoctor . com . au