Several junior doctors at the Sunshine Coast’s main hospital have expressed safety and fatigue concerns in an annual survey.
Their worries come as Sunshine Coast University Hospital dropped in its ranking in the latest Australian Medical Association Queensland Resident Hospital Health Check.
The hospital scored a C+, down from the B- it recorded last year.
About 32 per cent of the survey’s local respondents reported safety concerns and 48 per cent feared making a fatigue-based error.
That’s compared to 29 per cent and 46 per cent statewide.
AMA Queensland Committee of Doctors in Training chair Dr Elise Witter said Queensland’s figures were “disappointing and “disturbing”.
A Sunshine Coast Health spokesperson said the service had made improvements in the report and it was committed to improving the wellbeing of junior doctors.
The spokesperson outlined several measures the service has taken, including training and education courses and the installation of security cameras.
But Ms Witter said the statistics made for grim reading.
“Everyone deserves to feel safe at work,” she said.
“What we are hearing from our junior doctors, particularly those on ward call overnight, is that they do not feel safe walking between hospital buildings.
“Disturbingly, 50 per cent of junior doctors are already feeling some form of burnout.
“We clearly need better workforce retention strategies and incentives to keep these doctors in the profession they have studied and worked so hard for.”
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A SCH spokesperson said the service was doing what it could to address safety and fatigue concerns.
“Our priority is the health, safety and wellbeing of our staff and we are committed to creating environments where they can thrive, feel safe, and perform at their best in delivering quality, safe health services,” they said.
“As a health service we listen and act on staff feedback, including junior doctors, and doing all that we can to build a culture where our staff feel safe to provide feedback.
“We’re pleased to see there are improvements in almost all areas in this year’s report: we want our junior doctors to feel safe, supported and recognised for their important role in patient care.
“Sunshine Coast Health is committed to improving the wellbeing of junior doctors by implementing a range of initiatives including training and education in burnout prevention.
“We want our staff to feel safe at work. To achieve this, we use various security measures such as CCTV, duress alarms, and de-escalation training available for all staff. Security staff at each of our hospitals are available on request to accompany staff during their shift if needed, or if they would like support to return to their car at the end of a shift.”
The survey of 831 doctors in training at hospitals across the state found a decrease in respondents reporting experiencing or witnessing bullying, discrimination or harassment, down to 35 per cent in 2024 from 48 per cent two years earlier.
But 81 per cent of respondents said they were concerned about negative consequences for reporting an incident, up from 75 per cent in 2023.
AMA Queensland president Dr Nick Yim said that was worrying.
“We cannot afford to have a new generation of doctors coming up who are afraid to report bad behaviour,” he said.
The SCH spokesperson said the service had “a zero-tolerance approach to bullying and harassment in the workplace”.
There are efforts to bolster staffing levels at SCUH.
There are 296 intern and house officer positions this year and the service could recruit 310 intern and house officer positions next year.
