Doctors and allied health professionals across Victorian public hospitals stopped work today in a coordinated industrial action over pay and working conditions, after more than a year of failed negotiations with the state government.
The Australian Medical Association (AMA) Victorian branch president Dr Simon Judkins said the protest came as a last resort after "over 60 meetings and six months of promises that an offer was imminent".
"Doctors do not want to be attending protests. They want to be in their hospitals doing what they've dedicated their lives to, and that's caring for their patients," Dr Judkins said. "But the reality is, they cannot do that job properly and safely with the unsustainable working conditions and staffing the government has provided."
The AMA is calling for conditions consistent with other emergency services, including a 12.5-hour cap on shifts and a guarantee of three consecutive days off in a fortnight.
The doctors' strike coincides with a 24-hour strike by allied health professionals represented by the Victorian Allied Health Professionals Association (VAHPA), who have also failed to secure a deal after 12 months of talks. Exemptions to the stop work apply in sectors such as emergency care, neonatal, maternity and paediatric patients, and units with high dependency patients including oncology, coronary and palliative care.
Health Minister Ingrid Stitt said the government was speaking with the AMA and hoped both parties would reach a resolution soon. "Those discussions are progressing well and I'm absolutely focused on making sure that they result in a settlement that everybody is comfortable with," she said.
Ms Stitt confirmed that hours of work and doctor fatigue formed part of the discussions and stated that strong plans were in place to ensure patient safety during the strike. However, she could not confirm if the government had made any offers in the past 14 months. The AMA confirmed no offer had yet been received from the government.