Internship Guide 2020 - Updated

YOUR PROFESSIONAL ASSOCIATON
A powerful voice for the medical profession
Congratulations on taking the next step along your professional pathway. Graduating medical school is a
major achievement and opens the door to an exciting career in medicine. As you journey through training,
it’s important to utilise the many resources that are available to you. AMA (NSW) offers significant support to
doctors-in-training (DITs), at both an individual and collective level.
What can AMA (NSW) do for YOU? Our Workplace Relations Team provides comprehensive support to assist
DITs with individual workplace matters. Our experienced advisors can provide advice and assistance in relation
to:
• Terms and conditions of employment
• Rates of pay
• Underpayment of overtime advice
• Safe hours and rostering
• Unfair dismissal
• Performance management meetings
• Bullying and harassment matters
• Workplace investigations
• Training disputes
• Registrations requirements
• Medico-legal advice
If you have a question or need help, please contact us on dit@amansw.com.au or phone 02 9438 8822.
We also offer Careers Service to support you throughout your career, including CV and cover letter development,
interview preparation and career path coaching. In addition, we provide events, resources and a range of
member benefits.
What can AMA (NSW) do for DITs and the profession?
As one of the most powerful voices in medico-politics, we have a long track record of effective advocacy. AMA
(NSW) supports DITs through advocacy on a broad range of issues, including gender equity, vocational training
requirements, training pipeline issues, and much, much more.
A year ago, our Doctors-in-Training Committee co-chairs, Dr James Lawler and Dr Sanjay Hettige met with
the Health Minister to ask for an online claiming system for unrostered overtime and callbacks for doctors-intraining.
As a result of that meeting, the system went live on 3 February 2020. The move to online means claims
can be made without paper and from outside the hospital. This is exciting not only because it will make it easier
for doctors-in-training to be paid correctly, but also because it will provide a much better picture of the actual
number of hours you’re being asked to work by hospital management.
In 2020, AMA (NSW) will be conducting the fourth annual Hospital Health Check survey.
The HHC results have been key in achieving advocacy wins for DITs:
• Online Unrostered Overtime Claims
• Expansion of unrostered overtime work that doesn’t require prior approval
• Minimum 10-hour breaks between rostered shifts and 14-hour maximum shift duration
• JMO Wellbeing and Support Plan
As a DIT, it’s easy to feel like you don’t have power to make change, however these are the types of wins that
are possible by being involved in AMA (NSW).
By joining AMA (NSW), you not only gain access to a huge range of individual support services, but you are also
contributing to the improvement of working conditions for you and your colleagues.
Dr Kean-Seng Lim
AMA (NSW) President
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