Surgeons upset by lists claim

Press, 3 June 1989, Page 6

Surgeons upset by lists claim

PA Wellington Surgeons have challenged the Nurses’ Association to prove claims doctors are manipulating public hospital waiting lists. Disciplinary action would be taken against surgeons who were shown to be transferring patients from public hospital surgery to private surgery for their own gain, said Professor Richard Stewart, the New Zealand branch chairman of the Royal Australasian College of Surgeons.

Professor Stewart’s statement was in reply to Nurses’ Association comments on the Audit Office report on public hospital surgical management.

The Nurses’ Association’s executive director, Ms Marion Blackbourn, said: “It is very easy to manipulate a waiting list for private benefit and an analysis of all waiting lists would be very useful in obtaining maximum efficiency.”

Professor Stewart said the college had no evi-

dence of surgeons manipulating lists. “Surgeons are not perfect and it may well occur. But I am not aware it is a major problem.” he said. “If the Nurses’ Association has any evidence of it the responsible course would be to supply the evidence to the college.” Ms Blackbourn said the Nurses’ Association did not have any hard evidence of manipulation. “We have not done any research but we have anecdotal evidence." She said the Nurses’ Association had said it was “very easy to manipulate a waiting list" rather than stating manipulation as a fact. “It is very difficult to prove.”

Ms Blackbourn said a doctor might be simply telling a patient the facts by saying an operation could go ahead quicker if it was done privately by the same surgeon. “I found it a bit surprising that the audit report mentioned it,” Ms Blackbourn said.