National 29 March 2018
Dear Member,

Welcome to the 7th issue for 2018 of ASMS Direct, our national electronic publication.

You can also keep in touch with the latest news and views on health issues relevant to public hospital specialists via our website www.asms.nz, which contains links (at the top of the home page) to our Facebook and LinkedIn pages, as well as our quarterly magazine The Specialist. We’re also on Twitter at https://twitter.com/ASMSNZ.

Your National Executive confirmed

The final results are in for the ASMS National Executive election, confirming the make-up of your National Executive for the next three years.

  • National President Murray Barclay (gastroenterologist, Canterbury)
     
  • Vice-President Julian Fuller (anaesthetist, Waitemata)
     
  • Immediate Past-President Hein Stander (paediatrician, Tairawhiti)
     
  • Region 1 – Julian Vyas (paediatrics, Auckland) and Andrew Ewens (emergency medicine, Waitemata)
     
  • Region 2 - Paul Wilson (anaesthetist, Bay of Plenty) and Annette van Zeist-Jongman (psychiatry, Waikato)
     
  • Region 3 - Tim Frendin (geriatric medicine, Hawke’s Bay) and Angela Freschini (anaesthesia, Tairawhiti)
     
  • Region 4 – Seton Henderson (intensive care, Canterbury) and Catherine (Katie) Ben (anaesthesia, Nelson Marlborough).

An election was held in regions 1 and 4 as more nominations were received for the vacancies available. The results of those elections are:

Region 1

  • Julian Vyas (Auckland DHB), 410 votes
  • Andrew Ewens (Waitemata DHB), 370 votes
  • Jenny Henry (Northland DHB), 320 votes.

Region 4

  • Seton Henderson (Canterbury DHB), 293 votes
  • Catherine (Katie) Ben (Nelson Marlborough DHB), 249 votes
  • Alastair (Craig) Carr (Southern DHB), 202 votes.

Voter return was 36.59%, being 1104 votes from 3017 eligible members, of which 58.70% voted online and 41.30% voted by post.

The new National Executive will take office on 1 April for a three-year term, with the first meeting taking place in Wellington on 11-12 April.

I would like to express my appreciation for the work of National Executive members who chose not to stand for the Executive this time (Jeff Brown, Jeff Hoskins, Carolyn Fowler and Julie Prior). Jeff Brown’s outstanding contribution as a regional representative, National President and National Secretary has been recognised in the March issue of The Specialist which should be with you soon.  Carolyn Fowler has been a regional representative for over well over a decade and has been on the ASMS negotiating team in all of the five of our national MECA negotiations while Jeff Hoskins has been a regional representative for five years. Julie Prior is the first medical officer to be an elected Executive member.

I also want to acknowledge all of the people who put themselves forward for election in Regions 1 and 4. Unfortunately, there are only a certain number of vacancies on the National Executive – but we take the interest in these positions as a further sign that ASMS is in good heart, and thank you for your willingness to commit to your union in this way.

Medical Council election results

The Medical Council of New Zealand has announced the names of the four successful candidates in its recent election. They are Drs Stephen Child, Ainsley Goodman, Pamela Hale and Curtis Walker.  Congratulations to them all.

Returning Officer and Medical Council Chief Executive Joan Simeon says their names have been sent to the Minister of Health for appointment, and she anticipates they will be appointed from July 2018.

The Specialist

The latest issue of your magazine, The Specialist, should be landing in pigeonholes and letterboxes about now. It includes articles on the future of publicly funded dermatology, the need to protect employment rights, a look at Māori health engagement as a key part of patient centred care, and a profile of Auckland interventional radiologist Brigid Connor.

A copy of the updated ASMS Constitution and our latest Health Dialogue on the path to patient centred care is also enclosed with The Specialist. These will be available shortly on the ASMS website at www.asms.nz.

Did you know…about payment over Easter?

There are two public holidays over Easter: Good Friday and Easter Monday. Easter Sunday is not a public holiday. If you would normally work on Good Friday and/or Easter Monday, you’ll be entitled to the day off on full pay. But if you’re on-call or otherwise rostered to work on “any part of” Good Friday or Easter Monday, you’ll be entitled to your normal pay for the day PLUS a day-in- lieu on full pay at a later date PLUS a loading of 50% of your “relevant hourly rate” (roughly time and a half) for every hour worked on the public holiday. Provided however, this loading will not be paid on any other penal rates paid on the day.


Kind regards,

Ian Powell
EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR