EmailHospital Circular 31/2011
Date Issued: 21 December 2011
Distribution: Public Hospitals & Health Services
Subject: Clinical Support Time for Specialists – Further Once-off Funding
Purpose: To advise of the release of a tranche of further once-off funding for Clinical Support Time for employed medical Specialists.
Background
The Heads of Agreement signed by the Australian Medical Association (Victoria) Limited, the Australian Salaried Medical Officers’ Federation (Victorian Branch), the Victorian Hospital’s Industrial Association and the Department in April 2009 described funding arrangements for Clinical Support Time arrangements for employed medical Specialists.
Funding Arrangements
Under the terms of the Heads of Agreement, the Department agreed to provide total funding of $80M for Clinical Support Time over the life of the Heads of Agreement. The $80M was to be apportioned in the following way:
- $10M in 2008-09
- $10M in 2009-10
- $20M in 2010-11
- $20M in 2011-12
- $20M in 2012-13
To date, affected health services have received, or have in their budgets, the amounts identified above for the 2009-10, 2010-11 and 2011-12 financial years. After the final $20M instalment mentioned above, that amount will remain in annual budgets on a recurrent basis.
The $10M instalment identified for the 2008-09 financial year has not yet been distributed to health services and is the subject of this Circular.
New Once-Off Arrangement
Due to delays to the initial implementation of Clinical Support Time arrangements, the parties to the Heads of Agreement decided to withhold distribution of that funding instalment until a later date.
The parties have recently revisited the issue of this $10M and have agreed that it should now be released for a once-off purchase by health services of additional Clinical Support Time.
The terms of this arrangement are as follows:
- Each Health Service will invite members of Hospital Senior Medical Staff (full-time or fractional) to propose clinical support activities, which may fall under one or more of continuing medical education, quality assurance, research, audit, or post-graduate / undergraduate teaching.
- Project proposals should outline the current situation, and the improvement that the project is intended to achieve.
- Proposals should also state the funds sought calculated as hours per week for the nominated term of the project.
- Project proposals will be considered and approved by the Clinical Support Time Working Group on a first come-first served basis.
- Funding will be allocated in the form of a number of hours per week for a finite period. The additional hours may be allocated by temporarily increasing the hours of existing staff, or by recruiting new staff for the term of the project.
- Projects will be funded for their duration, and without regard to the beginning or end of the financial year.
- On completion of each project, a final report will be provided to the Clinical Support Time Working Group and to the relevant Unit Head.
- Local Clinical Support Time Working Groups will report to the CEO and Chairmen of Senior Medical Staff Associations and AMA Victoria on the total expenditure of this money for Clinical Support Time activities.
The Department would strongly emphasise that this $10M is once-off and must in no way be seen to increase the current Clinical Support Time arrangements for Specialists on an ongoing basis. That is, ongoing total Clinical Support Time does not become $30M as a result of this once-off arrangement.
Distribution of the outstanding $10M
The Department will shortly distribute the outstanding $10M as a Specified Grant, using the same proportional distribution determined for the first instalment of $10M in 2009-10. Therefore, health services can expect to receive an identical amount from this instalment to that which they received in 2009-10.
Further Information
If you have any queries regarding the above, please contact Mr Simon Chant, Director Health Services Employee Relations by email to simon.chant@health.vic.gov.au or by telephone on (03) 9096 7313.
LANCE WALLACE
Executive Director
Finance & Corporate Services
