President and CEO update – May 2025

With the summer heat now behind us, it’s time prepare for the cold and the annual influx of respiratory illnesses that put pressure on our already stressed medical workforce.

We continue to support Queensland Health’s push to boost the free flu shot program, which has been visible in our media efforts.

In the lead-up to this year’s state budget on 24 June, the first from the LNP government, we will be sharing our calls and priorities to ensure it puts the health of Queenslanders across the state first. 

We applaud the state government’s commitment to infrastructure with its Hospital Rescue Plan announced last month. However, we need to see stronger investment in our healthcare workforce or those facilities simply won’t have enough staff. 

ADVOCACY EFFORTS

Vaccines

Despite Queensland Health providing free influenza shots again this year, vaccination fatigue remains a real challenge.

That reticence couldn’t be more ill-timed, as influenza strains emerging from the northern hemisphere indicate our upcoming flu season could be a particularly bad one. The last thing we need is patients presenting to already stressed emergency departments with easily preventable flu cases. 

Last year, nearly 200 people died from influenza – many of whom were unvaccinated. Concerningly, almost 20 per cent were aged between 30 and 65, a group generally considered to be at lowest risk. 

We continue to promote the vaccine in the media and are supporting Queensland Health in circulating its resource kit for doctors containing key messages and materials you can use in your own communication channels. You can find it on our website.

We continue to advocate for the influenza vaccine to be made free for all Australians under the National Immunisation Program.

Vaccinations against COVID-19 and RSV are also heavily encouraged, the latter particularly important for pregnant women. We’re pleased these vaccines are also being made available free for vulnerable cohorts.

State Budget Priorities

The chill in the air also heralds the winter sittings of Queensland Parliament, which includes the delivery of the state budget. 

The economic blueprint will be handed down on 24 June, and AMA Queensland has made no bones about our priorities for the new government – workforce, workforce, workforce.

Dedicated to being part of the medical workforce solution, this year we established a Workforce Working Group to develop practical and profession-led recommendations to help guide government policy. These are due to be released this winter, so we’ll have more to say in upcoming updates.

Our budget campaign began with a spotlight on the increase in patients waiting to receive planned surgery. Our calls to implement the recommendations of our Surgical Waitlist Roundtable Action Plan received strong coverage in The Sunday Mail, Cairns Post and on several radio stations.

We’ve also highlighted mental health as a huge area of concern. We called on the government to boost services by an extra $330 million, including delivering an additional 700 community mental health workers and 374 new psychiatric beds.

Most of us will know someone who’s struggled with their mental health – or have done so ourselves. We know timely and appropriate intervention is the key to help people struggling, and to prevent further cost down the track. 

Our other budget priorities include, improving First Nations, women’s and LGBTQIASB+ healthcare, boosting digital integration, and ensuring more options and support for those needing end of life care.  

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Federal election

We congratulate the Albanese government’s election to a second term on May 3. This means Labor’s $8.5 billion healthcare plan will be put into action. 

Heralded as the single-largest investment in Medicare since its creation more than 40 years ago, the funding will be used to increase GP training places and nursing scholarships and allow an extra 18 million GP visits to be bulk-billed every year. 

AMA Queensland believes that a better use of the funding would be to increase Medicare rebates for patients. Not all GPs will be able to transition to a fully bulk-billed service due to the rising costs of operation. 

We released information kits during the election outlining that the policy wasn’t in force yet, due to the number of patients turning up to practices expecting to be bulk-billed. 

We look forward to seeing more detail about the federal government’s plan, and how that will affect our members and doctors in Queensland. 

CAMPAIGNS

Board and Council election

AMA Queensland members are currently voting in the election for President, while other positions have been elected unopposed. 

Townsville surgeon A/Prof Daniel Carroll and Hervey Bay GP and incumbent President Dr Nick Yim are vying for the top job. Voting opened on 12 May and will close on 26 May. 

Vice President Dr Emilia Dauway will serve a second term after being elected unopposed, along with nine other positions on AMA Queensland Council. 

Members should have received a personalised email to their inbox which will allow you to vote for the roles of President, two Member Elected Directors and two Specialist Representatives. 

Student members will be asked to choose one Medical Student Representative out of four candidates for the role. 

For more information, please contact Returning Officer Mr Andrew Vivian on 07 3232 2900 or email nominations@pfn.com.au

Read more 

EVENTS

Upcoming events

This weekend sees one of our most fun and inspiring events – the Junior Doctor Conference in Hervey Bay. 

This is Dr Nick Yim’s hometown, and he’s raring to show off the lifestyle and opportunities his neck of the woods can offer young doctors. 

Clinical Director of Integrated Care on the Fraser Coast Dr Fiona Baker will be the keynote speaker, and there’ll be networking and knowledge-sharing galore. Keep an eye on the website and other communications for a full wrap-up and photos from the event. 

There are still tickets left to the most important black tie gala for doctors this year - our Dinner for the Profession. We can’t wait to see how our venue at The Star Brisbane serves up our theme of “fire and ice”. 

Our MC and keynote speaker is David Knoff, who spent 587 days as an expedition lead in Antarctica due to the COVID-19 pandemic and will share his insights into how healthcare works at the very bottom of the world.

Are you based in North Queensland? Townsville doctors, we have the perfect weekend of networking and insightful discussion planned for you this July. Join us, your colleagues and other local doctors for our Member networking event on a Friday evening, before celebrating women supporting fellow women and our male allies at our Women in Medicine Breakfast. 

Join AMA Queensland and the Australian Senior Active Doctors Association (ASADA) for our engaging and inspiring one-day Senior Doctor Conference tailored to senior active and retired doctors this August. 

Are you thinking about travelling overseas this year? Join us for our Annual Conference 2025 in Vancouver, Canada to earn CPD points and learn key issues facing the profession while immersed in a unique tourism destination.

We can't wait to see you at one of our 2025 events!

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