Tasmanian health services have reduced elective open heart surgeries from daily to just twice a week due to ongoing strikes by critical cardiac specialists. These professionals, including three clinical perfusionists and one trainee at Royal Hobart Hospital, cite uncompetitive pay and demanding conditions as reasons for the industrial action, which began escalating late last year. Emergency procedures continue unaffected.
Role of Clinical Perfusionists in Heart Surgeries
Clinical perfusionists maintain patient life support during complex open heart operations using advanced heart-lung machines. Ghaz Jabur, Head of Clinical Perfusion at Royal Hobart Hospital, explains: “We take over the function of the heart and the lungs during open heart surgery by using quite advanced technology and machinery, specifically the heart-lung machine, or the bypass machine. And then we stop the heart from our end, give the heart drugs, and then the heart gets fixed, and at the end we win.”
Heavy On-Call Burdens and Staff Retention Crisis
With only three qualified perfusionists and one trainee, staff face intense on-call schedules. Dr. Jabur notes: “We do one in three weekdays and one in three weekends on call. Not only that, [just] because a person is on call, it doesn’t mean that sometimes other people that are not on call are needed. That’s happened multiple times, where I’ve got my kids on my lap sitting in my lounge and I get a call saying we need help, and I’ve got to just drop everything and go.”
The specialists aim to meet rising demand from Tasmania’s aging population but face stalled negotiations over pay and conditions. Dr. Jabur warns: “If there are no perfusionists, there is no heart surgery, and people will have to be transferred to the mainland. People who are very sick, it will be very hard for them to transport them to the mainland. They’re unstable, and it will be a logistical nightmare, let alone the financial implications that will go with that.”
Trainee perfusionist Ed Okey struggles with prospects of leaving his home state: “I’ve been in Tassie my whole life, it’s where I want to live, where I want to raise kids and have my life. But then if you look interstate and see the pay disparity, at the top end it’s up to 80 per cent more when it comes to money, and better working conditions, more annual leave if you work extra on call, allowances for if you do higher education, things like that that don’t exist down here.” He adds that lower cost of living no longer justifies the pay gap.
Government Deploys Locums Amid Backlash
Health authorities are rescheduling delayed procedures and exploring locum hires to boost surgery capacity. However, local staff question the approach. Dr. Jabur states: “How can you justify bringing locums in for a very short period of time when that money could actually go towards our contract, and almost entirely fund what we need for the three year period, I just don’t understand the logic. If you have no money, how can you approve locum perfusion — and I know how much locums earn, because I was one of them.”
Tasmanian Health Minister Bridget Archer responds: “The Tasmanian government values all our health care workers and want to see them get a pay rise as soon as possible. We will continue to negotiate in good faith and hope to have a resolution soon.”
Widespread Industrial Action Escalates
Strikes extend beyond perfusionists, with Health and Community Services Union (HACSU) members across Tasmania demanding better pay, safer conditions, and competitive wages. Actions this month target building services, environmental services, domestic services, instrument sterilisation, hospital aides, pharmacy, mental health, oral health, child safety, cleaning, radiation and oncology, and orderlies at sites including Beaconsfield District Hospital North, Devonport Community Health Centre, Ulverstone Community Health, and Mersey Community Hospital.
HACSU state secretary Robbie Moore observes: “I have never seen a situation where you have got such widespread industrial action. And it’s nearly always happening because the government has said they’ll do one thing, and then they don’t do it. This is a situation where the workforce has absolutely lost confidence in the government and management. This needs an intervention.”
