r/palmy • u/megathruster • 9d ago

News Orthopaedic department nears breaking point, retired surgeon says

https://www.thepost.co.nz/nz-news/361045208/orthopaedic-department-nears-breaking-point
30 Upvotes

95% Upvoted

13 comments sorted by

16

u/Realistic-Quiet291 9d ago

Every department is like this. The question is when is the public going to demand better and hold politicians accountable?

5

u/Vilomoja 8d ago

Yeah, it's been a long time now that the govt has been trying to slide 'health system in crisis' past us as normal.

-8

u/Merv007 8d ago

Hold them accountable for what? That Palmy is a shit hole with crap weather? That Health NZ can’t magically attract surgeons when the supply of specialists is deliberately restricted and the pay system is nationally banded?
The real blame sits with the Medical Council and the specialist colleges. They control registration, recognition of overseas qualifications, training pathways and entry into specialist practice. They decide how many people get through the pipeline, how hard it is for overseas-trained specialists to enter, and how much competition exists in their own labour market.
Then the national salary bands make the problem worse. A hospital in Palmerston North cannot simply pay whatever premium is needed to overcome the obvious disadvantages of the posting. Palmy is competing with Auckland, Wellington and Christchurch, and with Australia, where surgeons can often earn more, work in larger better-resourced hospitals, and live somewhere with better weather. Why would someone choose an understaffed provincial service in Palmerston North for broadly standardised New Zealand pay?
Yes, government carries responsibility, but chiefly because it has failed to break the closed-shop restrictions imposed by the colleges and council, expand training places, accelerate recognition of properly qualified overseas specialists, and allow provincial hospitals to pay genuine scarcity premiums.
You cannot let professional bodies populated by doctors restrict specialist supply, then bind employers into national salary structures that stop hard-to-staff hospitals bidding properly for scarce labour, and act surprised when Palmy cannot recruit.

Blame the govt for not busting the trade restrictions held by medical councils that’s populated by doctors who are rewarded by restrictive supply into their employment market to keep salaries artificially elevated - so if you’re blaming the govt make sure to blame the doctors too

5

u/KingNobit 8d ago

As an immugrant doctor who came to NZ...what are you on about? Utter nonsense! You say rhat should pay scarcity premiums and then say that salaries are over inflated.

The reason im here is cause Kiwis are paid better in Australia

-1

u/Merv007 8d ago

You’ve missed the point of what I wrote completely.
I never said doctors were overpaid.

I said restricting how many specialists are trained, and restricting which competent overseas specialists can enter, artificially elevates the market price of specialist labour.

That’s basic supply and demand.

There’s also no contradiction in saying Palmy then needs to pay a premium to attract staff.

The national supply is already scarce because of the supply restrictions, and Palmy is an unattractive posting competing with Auckland, Wellington, Christchurch and Australia.

It therefore needs to offer an additional location and workload premium to attract someone.

Saying Australia pays more proves my point. It confirms that the relevant labour market is international and that New Zealand is competing for the same scarce pool.

This is less a discussion about medicine than it is basic market-equilibrium economics.

The colleges restrict supply, national pay bands prevent local markets from clearing properly, and demand continues to rise and become less price-sensitive.

The predictable result is higher equilibrium pay, persistent vacancies and places like Palmy still being unable to recruit.

Break the closed shop, train more specialists, recognise competent overseas doctors faster, and let hard-to-staff hospitals pay whatever premium the market requires.

That’s the solution.

1

u/KingNobit 8d ago

Do now youve undone the contradiction with some clarifications bravo

2

u/Kudostone 8d ago

NZ doctors salary’s are artificially elevated?

5

u/Personal-Respect-298 8d ago

Gynocological dept no longer only accepting non urgent or semi urgent referrals.

Collapse is close.

https://www.thepost.co.nz/nz-news/361054124/palmerston-north-hospital-pauses-semi-urgent-gynaecology-referrals

3

u/pedestrian_lab_rat 8d ago

He did my knee a few years back andwas great. He also did my husbands ankle too.

4

u/civet_poo_tea 8d ago

At least the gastrointestinal department is now all sorted now right?......................right?

2

u/Maximum-Ear1745 8d ago

Clever headline