Governor Togiola:
“Doctors need to be licensed. It’s the law!”
During his weekend radio program, Governor Togiola Tulafono stressed that local doctors need to be licensed because “it’s the law.”
The Governor explained that doctors, like all medical practitioners, nurses, lawyers and engineers, need to be licensed.
“Credentials are set by the regulatory board for medical doctors to meet in order to be employed at LBJ Hospital,” Togiola said.
Earlier this month, chairman of the Health Services Regulatory Board which licenses medical personnel, expressed his agreement with a suggestion by Senate President Lolo Moliga that the licensing law be amended to recognize education completed at the Fiji School of Medicine for licensure.
Lolo wants the statute amended through administrative rule or else he will take the next step, which is introducing legislation in the Fono when it reconvenes in January 2008.
The Hospital Authority has set a June 2008 deadline for LBJ Hospital doctors to sit and pass the United States Medical Licensure Examination (USMLE) as a condition of continued employment at the LBJ Medical Center.
HSRB chairman Utoofili Asofaafetai Maga has announced that the board has already approved waiving the USMLE requirement for doctors now employed at the LBJ Hospital, but that all future hires must meet the regulation.
Utoofili is concerned about the impact on health services if the more than 30 physicians at the LBJ Hospital who graduated from the Fiji School of Medicine were forced to leave because they refuse to sit or fail to pass the USMLE.
Governor Togiola said some people are questioning why current doctors need to take examinations to be employed as doctors at LBJ, and no one is questioning why nurses are required to pass either the Licensed Practical Nurse or Registered Nurse exam.
“The difficulty of hiring professional doctors from off-island has caused LBJ Hospital officials to not follow the current law regulating licenses for doctors,” said Governor Togiola. “This controversy is now becoming political, yet, it should not be. This concerns the lives of our people.”
Governor Togiola’s position is to follow the law. He said all practitioners need to be licensed.
“If someone sues LBJ Hospital for medical malpractice, the hospital does not pay the court’s ruling. ASG does!” the Governor concluded.
Meanwhile, the Hospital Authority Board stands firm that non-US certified doctors at the LBJ Hospital comply with the regulatory requirements, but the Senate President continues to crusade for a change in the licensing law.
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