Media Releases and Communiques
Australian Health Ministers Announce Radiotherapy Plans
The Australian, State and Territory Governments today announced continued and increased action to improve radiotherapy services for cancer patients.
28 November 2003
Joint Communique
Australian Health Ministers Announce Radiotherapy Plans
The Australian, State and Territory Governments today announced continued and increased action to improve radiotherapy services for cancer patients.
This is a major step in responding to the Radiation Oncology Inquiry, chaired by Professor Peter Baume AO, released in 2002. The response has been developed by the intergovernmental Radiation Oncology Jurisdictional Implementation Group (ROJIG), whose report was endorsed today at the Australian Health Ministers' Conference (AHMC) in Sydney.
Addressing the five key actions identified by the Baume Inquiry, Health Ministers have agreed to:
- work together to reduce fragmentation in radiotherapy, and continue to implement reforms to the radiotherapy sector already commenced by ROJIG;
- implement a service development framework for radiation oncology (produced by ROJIG), which will enable a systematic, national approach to making staff and equipment available to meet demonstrated need;
- State and Territory strategies to raise awareness of Patient Travel Assistance Schemes that are available to radiotherapy patients and consideration of a range of principles produced by ROJIG, which will help patients to access those schemes.
- development and implementation of projects to address workforce shortages, which are currently the main impediment to better patient access; and
- the development of a comprehensive quality program for all radiation oncology services.
These reforms build on the many initiatives already underway at Federal, State and Territory level to improve patient access to radiotherapy, including the announcement of several new regional radiotherapy services. A number of existing services have also been expanded or had outdated equipment replaced through Federal or State funding.
Significant effort has also been expended by all governments to address non-medical workforce shortages. A list of workforce projects underway nationally is included in ROJIG's report.
Copies of the ROJIG's report are to be distributed directly to stakeholders including professional and consumer bodies, cancer care organisations and radiotherapy facilities.
Media contact: Kay McNiece, Media Adviser, AHMC, 0412 132 585
