The Australasian College for Emergency Medicine (ACEM) has warned against the rapid introduction of non-medical practitioner roles as a solution to the healthcare workforce shortage.
The Australasian College for Emergency Medicine (ACEM) is urging greater caution in establishing new healthcare roles, particularly in rural and regional areas, citing significant concerns about patient safety and clinical risk.
“It is imperative that everyone presenting to an Emergency Department has timely access to emergency care, otherwise we run the risk of setting up a two-tiered health system that disadvantages those living outside metropolitan areas,” ACEM stated.
The College’s position comes in response to observed trends in Australia and New Zealand following the United Kingdom’s model of introducing Physicians Associates and Extended Scope Paramedics to address staffing gaps.
While acknowledging that Emergency Departments have traditionally embraced multi-disciplinary approaches to patient care, ACEM maintains that the effectiveness of extended practitioner roles depends on clearly defined scope of practice and robust frameworks for education, training and quality improvement.
Recent research reinforces the College’s concerns about rural healthcare inequality. The “State of Emergency 2024: Regional, Rural and Remote” report revealed that at least one-third of presentations in regional and rural hospitals were classified as high-urgency cases (categories 1-3 on the Australasian Triage Scale), demonstrating the critical need for specialist emergency physicians in these settings.
“All communities deserve to be treated by highly-qualified, medically-trained physicians, not non-medical practitioners who lack the depth of training undertaken by doctors,” ACEM stated.
ACEM expressed particular alarm about the rapid implementation of new roles with minimal input from emergency medicine specialists, creating what they describe as “an unacceptable level of clinical risk.”
They called for “purposeful and meaningful consultation” with emergency medicine clinicians before introducing new healthcare roles, emphasising that long-standing workforce deficits require comprehensive solutions rather than stop-gap measures.
ACEM has indicated its willingness to collaborate with governments, health system leaders and regulatory agencies to develop sustainable solutions to the workforce crisis that maintain high standards of emergency care across all communities in Australia and New Zealand.
Ritchelle is a Content Producer for Healthcare Channel, Australia’s premier resource of information for healthcare.
