News
AMA (WA) Office Bearers Elected | AMA Federal Agreement Negotiations Update
Monday May 6, 2024
The outcome of our recent election affirms the trust our membership places in our leadership to steer the Association through an unprecedented period.
While the results will be made official at the Annual General Meeting on 12 June, we can confirm that AMA (WA) President Dr Michael Page has been re-elected for a second term. We congratulate Dr Page, as he continues his excellent and effective stewardship of the State’s peak body for medical practitioners and students.
Dr Katharine Noonan has been re-elected as Vice President, while Dr Kyle Hoath, a currently serving Board member, takes the other Vice President position, which was vacant. Dr Page is a Chemical Pathologist and CEO at Clinipath Pathology. Dr Noonan is a Public Health Medicine Trainee at WA Health. Dr Hoath is a Consultant Psychiatrist, and is also a director and founder of Oqea and Modalis.
It was also pleasing to see uncontested re-elections, indicating a strong level of member support for our leadership, governance and direction. We have a strong, unified, organised, competent and committed group of doctors overseeing advocacy outcomes for our members. At Board level, we recently appointed two non-medical, independent Directors, an important step in modernising and strengthening the governance of our Association.
All this places us in a good position ahead of the upcoming mediated negotiation with AMA Federal in an attempt to resolve our differences. We believe we can find a fair and reasonable compromise for the current impasse.
Against this backdrop, it is business as usual for the Association, and the Board and Council look forward to the year of medical advocacy ahead. Next week, we will release the results of Hospital Health Check, our influential and transformative junior doctor survey, which this year has had record numbers of participants. Next Thursday the State Government releases its Budget, and Dr Page will provide our critique of how the health sector has fared.
Negotiations with the Government for a new WA Health Industrial Agreement continue, with the AMA (WA)’s efforts determining the pay and conditions for public hospital doctors. Only recently our Industrial Relations team revealed that ongoing negotiations on behalf of 11 practitioners at one worksite had resulted in the doctors sharing in almost $1 million over a two-year period. These doctors will also be the first to sign permanent contracts with WA Health, marking a new era for senior practitioners.
We continue to advocate for our highly valued general practitioners, whose efforts provide an incredible service to West Australians, and play a vital role in reducing the burden on the hospital system.
Please join me in thanking our elected leadership team for their commitment to the objectives and values of the AMA (WA),and congratulating them on the outcome of the elections and their achievements in taking on these vital roles.
Dr Mark Duncan-Smith
AMA (WA) Board Chair
