Comments on: Deal with this one Minister

By: Pedrovsky

Pedrovsky — Thu, 07 Jan 2010 08:02:40 +0000

Millsy,
I have no idea who closed how many hospitals… I do know sometimes simplistic openings and closings are irrelevant. I live in the provinces and was FLOWN by the state to Waikato with a piece of sawdust in my eye… cheaper than finding a replacement eye specialist.. who doesn’t get enough work. I have no thoughts on your suggestion I throw working mothers around. I haven’t experienced US style health..but UK is excellent. My points were about us all getting on our moral high horses and dictating to any professional where they work. I have had Egyptian, Iranian, and Sri Lankan Docs in NZ and they were all great..

By: theresaj

theresaj — Thu, 07 Jan 2010 04:07:47 +0000

Millsy ,
I think the hospital closures by both parties came to about 70. Scarey , short sighted stuff.. At the time of the Edgeware Rd nightmare ,ChCh emergency services could barely cope..How would they cope with a much bigger disaster?

By: Mrs Hawes

Mrs Hawes — Thu, 07 Jan 2010 00:58:01 +0000

pdm obviously doesn’t work in the health sector. I can assure him that Tony Ryall’s much-vaunted attempt to reduce time-wasting administration (for which read middle management, without whom we would all be much better off) has been well and truly headed off at the pass by the said middle management who have hijacked a good idea and used it to reduce the availablility of frontline reception, typing and filing staff so that actual health workers are now doing these tasks instead of seeing patients. Brilliant!!

By: Phil

Phil — Wed, 06 Jan 2010 23:33:21 +0000

Compare this with the difference in rural GP salaries in Australia :
New Zealand : $150,000 for full time
Australia : $200,000 – $400,000, particularly in remote rural areas

One thing you’re forgetting is that ‘Rural’ New Zealand is never that far from a major or main centre. Whereas ‘Rural’ in Australia could be +1,000km away from anything!

Quality of life in those rural centres would be comparatively very poor, and cost of living probably much higer, so that explains a good portion of the pay rate difference.

By: John Ryall

John Ryall — Wed, 06 Jan 2010 20:37:10 +0000

pdm – you say that the Minister of Health has already turned around 9 years of largesse in the administration areas of the health system. Can you tell me where you get evidence for this? Apart from setting up another bureaucracy (the National Health Board)and cutting a few Ministry of Health Committees, I cannot see any evidence for this assertion.

By: StephenR

StephenR — Wed, 06 Jan 2010 20:16:47 +0000

3) Do you support an American style health system

I don’t think anybody does, Americans aren’t even allowed to buy health insurance from out of state companies – their system is regulated up to their eyeballs.

By: millsy

millsy — Wed, 06 Jan 2010 19:16:44 +0000

Predrovsky,

1) How many hospitals did Labour close after 1999 and how many hopsitals did National close before 1999?
2) Why do you think working mothers should lose their support payments and then be thrown back into more or less having to choose between paying the rent and buying food for for thier kids (bearing in mind that wages are absurdly low in this country – if employers pulled their finger out and paid their workers a decent wage…)
3) Do you support an American style health system?

By: Pedrovsky

Pedrovsky — Wed, 06 Jan 2010 17:18:00 +0000

H Fee, I don’t think they take the hippocratic oath and even if they do it mentions patients not being harmed- Not higher transtasman pay!! But surely all students in all subjects are partially subsidised so does your logic (or lack of) cover them as well. $150k ain’t that much… GPs earn double what I earn and work at LEAST twice as hard/long. Throw in 7 years study, big loan, bad hours and I think they are underpaid. Which is why they leave… the global health system has 1 million vacancies and given the 9 years of (mostly- see below) spending waste from Clarke & co turning NZ into a 2nd world economy we have the situation where our doctors/ nurses/radiographers go to 1st world and we employ 3rd world doctors (who are mostly very good). Some of the Clarke spending wasn’t wasteful.. like the health wonks who had a big hand in having things organised for Ryall. But the rest working for families, interest free student bribes, needless ministries and hip hop ..was waste.

By: pdm

pdm — Wed, 06 Jan 2010 15:43:52 +0000

Dorothy – he has already turned around 9 years of largesse in the administration areas of the Health system as just one example of his ability.

By: millsy

millsy — Wed, 06 Jan 2010 11:11:01 +0000

Hey pdm, tell me, how many hospitals did National close before 1999? And how many hopsitals did Labour close after 1999? And thats why Labour spent heaps of money. Because New Zealanders need health services and hospitals.

++++

Anyway, listen for that giant sucking sound come April, to paraphrase a US presidential candidate.