❓ The parliamentary question seeks information on the use of FIFO/DIDO specialists at Albany Hospital due to difficulties in local recruitment. The answer provides a breakdown of the specialists employed, their frequency of service, and justification for the FIFO/DIDO model.
AnsweredQoN 5524Legislative Assembly
QuestionView source ↗
I refer to Albany Hospital and ask: (a) how many (in both total head count and number of staff) fly in, fly out (FIFO) or drive in - drive out (DIDO) specialists are employed, or contracted to provide clinical services at the hospital because the positions have not been able to be filled by locals; and (b) can you provide a breakdown of what clinical services are provided by FIFO, and/or DIDO clinicians and what is the frequency of the service, eg. child psychiatrist, visits once a month for X number of days, etc.?
AnswerView source ↗
Answered
16 August 2016
Responded by
Minister for Health
Response time
48 days
Answer as at 29 June 2016
(a)
Type
Frequency of the Service
Headcount
FTE
Consultant Psychiatrist
Contracted five days per week
1
1
Advertising for the position is currently underway. WA Country Health Service - Great Southern have undertaken two prior recruitment processes to fill this position locally which have been unsuccessful.
(b)
Type of Service
Frequency of the Services
Fellow of Australian College of Emergency Medicine (FACEM)
Every day is covered by 2 x FACEMs except 1 weekend every fortnight (staffed by Salaried and FIFO Specialists)
High Dependency Unit Consultants
10 hours per day plus on-call
Oncology
1 day consultation per month
Paediatrics
5 days consultation per month
Urology
On average 2 theatre lists per month
Ophthalmology
1 theatre list per month
Ear Nose Throat (ENT)
1 theatre list every 6 weeks
Orthopaedics
2 theatre lists per month plus on-call
Plastic Surgeon
2 theatre lists per month; plus every 4 th month 1 extra theatre list
Dental Surgeons
1 theatre list per week
Nephrologist
Up to ½ day every 10 weeks to see Dialysis patients only.
Fertility Specialist
1 theatre list per month
Child Psychiatrist
4 days consultation per month (includes inpatient and community child and adolescent mental health)
Consultant Psychiatrist
Every day plus on-call, as referred to in part (a).
Across country WA specialist clinicians visit regional areas to ensure that country patients where possible have access to care closer to home. Albany Health Campus (AHC) utilises visiting specialists and clinicians in a range of areas as outlined in the above table. Recruitment of resident specialists is a high priority for the region and they are committed to local recruitment. However, some of these specialities have low patient volumes which makes attraction of resident specialists difficult. In these instances employing a visiting specialist can be more cost effective and efficient.
In addition, the AHC Emergency Department and High Dependency Unit (HDU) have a mixed model of medical service delivery which incorporates both salaried and rotational visiting medical officers. Having experienced clinicians from metropolitan tertiary hospitals visit on a rotating basis ensures that a highly skilled, multidisciplinary team of emergency clinicians is available in the region at all times. FIFO/DIDO specialists bring a wide range of skills due to their expertise in tertiary centres and also benefit the region by developing links with tertiary hospitals and specialists. This mixed model is not uncommon to use within regional Emergency Departments and HDU across WA Country Health Service to ensure a high level of care for patients.
(a)
Type
Frequency of the Service
Headcount
FTE
Consultant Psychiatrist
Contracted five days per week
1
1
Advertising for the position is currently underway. WA Country Health Service - Great Southern have undertaken two prior recruitment processes to fill this position locally which have been unsuccessful.
(b)
Type of Service
Frequency of the Services
Fellow of Australian College of Emergency Medicine (FACEM)
Every day is covered by 2 x FACEMs except 1 weekend every fortnight (staffed by Salaried and FIFO Specialists)
High Dependency Unit Consultants
10 hours per day plus on-call
Oncology
1 day consultation per month
Paediatrics
5 days consultation per month
Urology
On average 2 theatre lists per month
Ophthalmology
1 theatre list per month
Ear Nose Throat (ENT)
1 theatre list every 6 weeks
Orthopaedics
2 theatre lists per month plus on-call
Plastic Surgeon
2 theatre lists per month; plus every 4 th month 1 extra theatre list
Dental Surgeons
1 theatre list per week
Nephrologist
Up to ½ day every 10 weeks to see Dialysis patients only.
Fertility Specialist
1 theatre list per month
Child Psychiatrist
4 days consultation per month (includes inpatient and community child and adolescent mental health)
Consultant Psychiatrist
Every day plus on-call, as referred to in part (a).
Across country WA specialist clinicians visit regional areas to ensure that country patients where possible have access to care closer to home. Albany Health Campus (AHC) utilises visiting specialists and clinicians in a range of areas as outlined in the above table. Recruitment of resident specialists is a high priority for the region and they are committed to local recruitment. However, some of these specialities have low patient volumes which makes attraction of resident specialists difficult. In these instances employing a visiting specialist can be more cost effective and efficient.
In addition, the AHC Emergency Department and High Dependency Unit (HDU) have a mixed model of medical service delivery which incorporates both salaried and rotational visiting medical officers. Having experienced clinicians from metropolitan tertiary hospitals visit on a rotating basis ensures that a highly skilled, multidisciplinary team of emergency clinicians is available in the region at all times. FIFO/DIDO specialists bring a wide range of skills due to their expertise in tertiary centres and also benefit the region by developing links with tertiary hospitals and specialists. This mixed model is not uncommon to use within regional Emergency Departments and HDU across WA Country Health Service to ensure a high level of care for patients.
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