Bullying, aggression or violence are not condoned at Dubbo Hospital, reports its acting general manager Jenny Johnson.
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Mrs Johnson has outlined a range of programs and strategies in place to deal with them.
Her advice follows the release of the results of the statewide 2018 Hospital Health Check that surveyed doctors-in-training across the five categories of overtime and rostering, access to leave, well-being, education and training, and morale and culture.
Eleven junior doctors at Dubbo Hospital took part in the survey.
They put Dubbo Hospital in the top five hospitals in the state for all categories.
The hospital had the best results for junior doctor well-being in the state and was the third best performer in terms of overall results.
But 36.36 per cent of respondents told of feeling “unsafe at work due to verbal or physical intimidation or threats from patients or staff”.
The same percentage of respondents answered “yes” when asked if they had experienced bullying, discrimination or harassment from another staff member.
This week Mrs Johnson said the state government spent $4.6 million annually on “culture change plans” for local health districts.
“Bullying, in any form, is unacceptable to the Western NSW Local Health District and NSW Health has a wide range of programs and strategies in place to address any issues of bullying,” she said.
They include a confidential anti-bullying advice line and anti-bullying advisers for managers.
A dedicated support line offers advice and support to junior medical officers (JMOs) who experience bullying and specially-trained senior medical staff volunteers recommend “how to deal with such behaviour and how to make a complaint”.
Education and people management skills are provided by the Health Education and Training Institute.
Mrs Johnson said Dubbo Hospital had a dedicated department for “all matters” relating to junior doctors, including safe rostering and fatigue management.
“Dubbo Health Service actively participates in NSW Health’s statewide initiatives regarding workplace culture, JMO health and well-being, and the Respectful Culture in Medicine program,” she said.
“Dubbo Health Service runs sessions for managers and staff on the topics identified in the People Matters Employee Survey, including on the prevention of bullying.
“These sessions will continue over the next six months.”
