The issue of training places for new medical graduates was again in the news last week when Health Minister Tanya Plibersek announced A$8 million to expand medical intern places in rural private hospitals…
One of US President Barack Obama’s key health advisers has just published a review in the aftermath of the Mid Staffordshire hospital scandal. Don Berwick’s review is both thoughtful and reflective but…
What if, after several years of studying in an intense degree program, you graduate only to find no jobs within your field? Since 2012, public universities have been allowed to determine the number of…
If you live far from a city, you are likely to be in poorer health than your urban counterparts; you’re also less likely to use health-care services and if you do, you’ll have to wait longer for care…
In the fourth part of our series Health Rationing, Peter Sivey explains why it might be time to abandon Medicare’s fee-for-service model. Teachers aren’t paid a fee for each lesson they teach, nor are…
Health commissions and medical boards should publicly disclose the details of complaints against doctors when multiple allegations of misconduct or inappropriate behaviour are made, experts say. The call…
With Australia’s population growing, living longer, and experiencing more disease and disability, there’s no doubt demand for health services will increase. But how are we going to pay for it? With this…
Monash University demographer Bob Birrell is quoted in today’s Australian newspaper as saying the national doctor shortage is “a myth”. He points out a large recent increase in the number of GPs, a rise…
The latest round of the health blame game is in full swing, with service cuts to Victorian hospitals, and neither the state nor federal government taking responsibility. Commonwealth and Victorian health…
Data released recently by the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare show the number of dentists has increased by 24% in the five years to 2011. There are now around 12,700 dentists in Australia, with…
As Victorian hospitals have announced bed closures, job losses and elective surgery delays over the past six weeks, cuts to health service budgets look set to significantly affect patient care in the state…
Just before I finished high school, my local general practitioner suggested I consider medicine. But the thought of blood made me feel squeamish, so I went to university to do maths and physics, and to…
Almost two hundred medical students from diverse countries have just finished their medical education as full-fee-paying students. They’re now looking for the one year of employment (internship) they need…
Amid Australia’s ongoing doctor shortage, the health system risks losing dozens of Australian-trained, foreign-born doctors because of a shortage of intern places. The Australian Medical Students Association…
Data released recently by the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare shows the nation’s health care bill is rising rapidly, from $77.5 billion in 2000-2001 to $130 billion in 2010-11. The largest increases…
Most doctors shudder at the sight of the growing mountain of unread medical journals gathering dust on their desks over months, if not years. They need not despair though, as there are less time-consuming…
The recent report of the Senate Inquiry into rural health services gave tantalising glimpses of how the future of rural health services should be. But its central theme is not new. The persistent and consistent…
This is a story about two small Aboriginal communities in the Gulf region of North Queensland: Mornington Island and Doomadgee. They share two key characteristics with many other remote communities: very…
A drug-addicted Melbourne anaesthetist has been accused of infecting 56 of his patients with hepatitis C by injecting himself with opiate-filled syringes, before using them on his patients. While his gross…
Honorary Enterprise Professor, School of Population and Global Health, and Department of General Practice and Primary Care, The University of Melbourne