AMAV VICDOC SUMMER 2023 - Magazine - Page 19
»Ensuring medical expertise is
heeded in reforming Victoria’s
mental health system
(ultimately, the success or
failure in fundamentally
transforming Victoria’s mental
health system depends upon
successful implementation
of the Royal Commission’s
recommendations, and
medical expertise is
essential to successful
implementation).
»Addressing critical workforce
shortages (improving
collaboration between health
services and supporting/
pursuing a networking
solution in regional Victoria
which embraces referral
pathways, staffing solutions
and video linking, as opposed
to outsourcing).
»Refining the interface
between general practice
and hospitals (particularly by
improving discharge planning
and IT linkages).
»Ensuring more doctors are
involved in governance.
Though being critical
where necessary (we raised,
amongst other issues, concerns
around the proposed Mental
Health and Wellbeing Act, the
conduct of WorkSafe and the
lack of support for specialist
practitioners during the most
recent lockdown), we look
forward to working with the
Victorian Government over
the period ahead to support
the medical workforce and
ensure quality healthcare
for all Victorians.
INQUIRY INTO HEALTH
IMPACTS OF AIR POLLU TION
IN VICTORIA
-
On Monday 28 June, AMA
Victoria President, Dr Roderick
McRae, appeared before a public
hearing held by the Legislative
Council Standing Committee on
Environment and Planning on the
topic of the health impacts of air
pollution in Victoria.
Dr McRae noted that as the
peak professional organisation
representing medical
practitioners in Victoria, we
have a longstanding interest
in this issue, and stated that
from a medical perspective, the
adverse health consequences of
air pollution range from acute
and chronic effects, such as
restrictions in physical activity,
to emergency room visits for
asthma and hospitalisations for
respiratory and cardiovascular
causes, to premature mortality.
Further, Dr McRae remarked
that while over recent decades
there have been general
improvements in air quality
in Australia, due to a mix of
regulatory and non-regulatory
approaches, considerable
challenges remain and that
various developments have called
into question the effectiveness of
current air quality management
in Australia. These include an
increasing reliance on road
transport, the expansion of
mining and industries producing
hazardous air pollutants and the
compounding effects of climate
change and extreme weather
on poor air quality.
Dr McRae then canvassed
various mitigation strategies to
address the issue of air pollution
and restated AMA Victoria’s
position that strategies that
focus on improving energy
and combustion efficiency,
transitioning to non-combustion
energy sources and promoting
active transport (walking,
running, and cycling) should
be adopted.
Members can view our
submission on this topic here.
KEEPING FAMILIES SAFE
FROM ALCOHOL RELATED
VIOLENCE
-
In 2016, Victoria’s Royal
Commission into Family Violence
recommended that the Victorian
Government consider family
violence in its review of the
Liquor Control Reform Act 1998
(Vic) (the Act) on the basis of
the role of alcohol in fuelling
family violence.
Five years on from the Royal
Commission, proposals from the
review are under consideration.
The COVID-19 pandemic has
made the need for reform of the
Act even more pressing. We have
seen sales of packaged alcohol
soar, with alcohol retail turnover
in Victoria increasing by 33 per
cent between 2019 and 2020,
from $2.6 billion to $3.4 billion.
This increased flow of alcohol
into Victorian homes is likely to
fuel increases in family violence.
AMA Victoria, in addition to a
range of other organisations,
has written to the Victorian
Government urging it to
implement the following reforms
to the Act that would help
prevent alcohol-related
family violence:
»Introduce a delay of two
hours for delivery of online
alcohol orders, to stop the
rapid delivery of alcohol to
people’s homes.
»Shift delivery time to between
10am and 10pm, to reduce
known risks of alcohol-related
violence and suicide which
peak late at night in the home.
AMA Victoria takes a keen
interest in this issue. As doctors,
our members are often at the
frontline in dealing with the
devastating effects of family
violence, in addition to the
impacts of excessive alcohol
consumption more generally.
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