Tell that to the breast cancer patient whose mastectomy is postponed for a few weeks, or the heart patient awaiting bypass surgery, or the self-employed plumber who has cancelled all jobs and taken time off work to have his surgery.
DHBs managed the last RMO strike in October but spent precious health funds on covering striking junior doctors, and 1000 operations and procedures and about 3000 specialist appointments were postponed.
Why is it that the only workers or professions that we now see striking are the healthcare professions?
These days, we rarely see meat workers, boilermakers and wharfies going on strike.
We don't see our low-paid service and food workers going on strike.
When our ambulance staff went on strike recently it only involved the administration workers.
There is legislation protecting us from police going on strike because of the risk to law and order.
Surely, maintaining a safe, effective and efficient health service for our entire population is as important as maintaining law and order?
So, can it really be all about money? Are RMOs being fully informed by their union? In getting what the RDA [Resident Doctors' Association] has asked for, many RMOs may now be questioning whether this is really what they want.
As fundamental as the money is, the change is in the way RMOs will need to think about their working week.
This change now has to happen as the health and safety risk has been raised and must be addressed.
It will no longer be an 8am to 4.30pm Monday to Friday job with intermittent long days and weekend work with 12-day stretches and a week of nights thrown in.
The DHB proposal still has weekends protected, so that only three in nine weekends will be worked and certainly no more than two consecutive weekends.
Because the RDA insists that all rostered days off have to be attached to a weekend, all RMOs will need to be at work on a Wednesday, which is one of the health sector's quietest days and unfortunately, patients refuse to get sick in a pattern that matches how the RDA wants DHB staff to be rostered.
It is less likely that RMOs will be able to work with their specialist teams as consistently.
This is potentially a poorer training experience and already surgical registrars are writing to the RDA questioning whether the union has been acting in their best interests.
Importantly, the specialist training colleges governing RMOs will need to determine whether this will affect the length of the RMOs' training.
DHBs also need to remain fair to their other staff. Deborah Powell controls a stable of unions which covers 6 per cent of the DHB workforce.
Those unions are responsible for over 90 per cent of all health strikes.
We know that every healthcare worker, no matter what their role, comes to work because they want to make a difference to the lives of their patients.
With this in mind, it must be incredibly difficult for RMOs to make the decision to strike.
We can only hope that it is just as difficult for their fearless leader.
- Nick Chamberlain is CEO of Northland DHB.
