Hundreds of regional Victorian doctors walk off job for first time in 20 years

Doctors from Ballarat Base Hospital and Bendigo Health downed tools on Thursday, citing exhaustion, low morale and stressful working conditions, with some saying they were near breaking point.

The four-hour stoppage is part of escalating industrial action by the Australian Medical Association Victoria (AMAV), which said that after a year of negotiations, public hospital doctors still have not received an offer on an enterprise bargaining agreement from the Victorian government.

AMAV president Simon Judkins said the state has had three health ministers over the past 12 months, and no offers over that period. He accused the government of "kicking the can down the road", pointing to the planned redevelopment of Ballarat Base Hospital as an example.

"The new build won't solve the problem. It's staffing that will solve the problems," Dr Judkins said. "Buildings can't do surgery."

The Ballarat Base Hospital redevelopment and expansion — which includes a new emergency department and an extra 100 inpatient and short-stay beds — is due to be completed in late 2027. Dr Judkins said change was needed now.

Ballarat resident doctor Katie Lyng said the root causes were straightforward. "Everything would run smoother if we had protected breaks, good shift lengths," she said. "We are sick of it."

Junior doctor Christian McCaffrey, who works at Grampians Health — the health service that runs Ballarat Base Hospital — said that while he loved his job, it was all becoming too much.

The ABC last month reported that Ballarat and Bendigo hospitals were among five regional Victorian hospitals showing signs of system failure, including excessive emergency department wait times.

Why This Matters

Regional Victorians depend on these hospitals for emergency and ongoing care; a prolonged dispute could worsen already long wait times.
The strike signals a severe breakdown in relations between the medical workforce and the state government, with potential for further escalation.
A redeveloped hospital that cannot be adequately staffed would fail to deliver the promised improvements in patient care.

Background

Regional Victorian public hospitals have been under sustained pressure for years, facing high patient demand, staff shortages, and ageing infrastructure. The Ballarat Base Hospital redevelopment was approved to address capacity issues, but doctors argue that without fixing recruitment and retention — through better pay and working conditions — new buildings will not help. The strike is the first by Victorian doctors in two decades, underscoring the depth of frustration.

Key Perspectives

[AMAV and striking doctors]: They argue that sustainable patient care requires safe staffing levels, protected breaks, and reasonable shift lengths. After a year of talks with no government offer, they see industrial action as the only way to force a resolution. [Victorian government]: The government has not yet publicly responded to today's strike. Its position appears to be that the Ballarat Base Hospital redevelopment will address systemic problems, though it has not released an official statement on the industrial dispute. [Critics/Skeptics]: Some may question the timing and impact of a doctors' strike on patient safety in already strained regional emergency departments. Others might argue that three health ministers in 12 months has created instability that hampers negotiation.

What to Watch

Whether the Victorian government makes an enterprise bargaining offer in the coming days or weeks.
If the industrial action escalates beyond the four-hour stoppage — longer or repeated strikes would signal a deepening crisis.
Patient wait times at Ballarat and Bendigo emergency departments over the next month as a real-world measure of the staffing pressures doctors describe.

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