President’s Update – Tell us what you really think!

You’ve got the mic

Here at AMA SA, we talk a lot about giving our members a voice. As the only organisation which represents all doctors at all stages of their careers, we have clout that other organisations don’t. Our collective strength gives us a ‘seat at the table’ which allows us to shape policy and legislation.

In 2025 we want to amplify the voices of our members like never before. Today we’re launching our Feedback Portal – a new online tool that gives members a direct line of communication to me and the AMA SA team. We want to understand more about the issues that matter to you and how we can work together to deliver better outcomes for you this year.

Feedback from our members is crucial for several reasons.

• Fully informed advocacy: Two-way communication ensures that AMA SA is well informed about what’s happening on the frontline of care. It’s vital that we have our finger on the pulse, so that we can bring issues of concern to light through the media or through our regular meetings with health decision makers. Regular feedback will also help us identify issues early and address them before they become significant problems.
• Effective policy development: AMA SA relies on its Council and various committees to shape policy and identify areas of priority for our advocacy work. The volunteer members of these groups do an incredible job. Another layer of feedback will empower them to continue to develop well-rounded and effective policies which represent the diverse perspectives of our membership.
• Improved member support: Part of our core mission is to help doctors successfully practise medicine. We do that by offering a range of professional and business tools as well as access to networking and educational events and exclusive member benefits. Increased feedback will allow us to tailor our services to your professional needs to offer increased member value.
• Driving innovation: Feedback often brings fresh perspectives and new ideas. By hearing from our members more frequently, we can innovate and adapt to the ever-changing landscape of the medical profession.

Access the Feedback Portal here

We really hope you’ll find it useful. Your comments will be processed by our team as a matter of priority and you’re welcome to provide your name or remain anonymous.

Our social media platforms offer another great way to stay informed and give us your feedback. If you don’t already do so, please follow us on LinkedIn, Facebook and Instagram.

Minister’s meeting

Last week, I had my first meeting of the year with South Australia’s Health Minister Chris Picton. I was joined by AMA SA Vice President Associate Professor Peter Subramaniam and our CEO Nicole Sykes.

As always, the conversation covered a lot of ground, including the IT problems which caused significant disruptions in December last year. As many of you are aware, SA Health experienced a system-wide issue affecting its Health Information Brokerage (HIB) system, which is responsible for delivering messages between various clinical and administrative systems.

We raised our concerns about the HIB system outage with Minister Picton. He assured us that contingency plans are being rolled out to mitigate disruptions in the event of future problems.

If AMA SA members have specific concerns or information about these IT issues, please get in touch via our new Feedback Portal. The Minister has offered to provide further information to those who seek it.  

AMA SA continues to enjoy a constructive and productive relationship with Minister Picton. These regular meetings are a vital way of ensuring our members’ voices are heard and we’re kept up to date about important medical and healthcare matters.