🩺 EXCLUSIVE CHAT: NSW Health Minister Ryan Park

Health Minister Ryan Park joins Jonesy & Amanda to chat about giving GPs the ability to diagnose ADHD in a major medical shake-up.

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
Jersey and Amanda jam Nation.

Speaker 2 (00:03):
I was estimated that one in twenty around one million
people across Australia have ADHD, but with excessive costs when
it comes to getting disdiagnosed, that number is likely far greater. Well,
it's about to get easier with the Men's government announcing
reforms which will allow gps to treat ADHD to reduce
weight times and costs.

Speaker 1 (00:23):
For more.

Speaker 2 (00:23):
Let's chat to the news Howls Health Minister Ryan Park Hello, minister,
how are you?

Speaker 3 (00:29):
Yeah? Good? Thanks, good morning to you both.

Speaker 2 (00:31):
Now until now to get diagnosed, have you had to
make an appointment with a psychiatrist or a neurologist.

Speaker 1 (00:36):
How has it been working so far?

Speaker 3 (00:39):
It's a challenge. We know that we've got workforce shortages
across our healthcare system and for some people that can
end up waiting twelve months to two years and that's
simply not something we want to see. So we've decided
to make a change and allow gps who undergo specific
and additional training to be able to be involved in

(00:59):
that prescribing those drugs needed for ADHD going forward, and
for a small amount, the believe that they'll also be
allowed to diagnose in that process.

Speaker 2 (01:09):
I saw something on the ABC last year on a
radio documentary called Background Briefing. Well, they looked at telehealth
and how easy it was for a lot of people
to be diagnosed or misdiagnosed through telehealth, and there were
terrible stories of people being given medication without proper diagnosis
and that conflicted the other medications they were taking with

(01:31):
terrible results. Will this at least be face to face
or people be able to be properly consulted by a doctor.

Speaker 3 (01:38):
Yeah, without a doubt in those doctors and gps, despite
the fact that they already undergo specific training, there will
be additional training for them to be involved in this program.
We estimate around one thousand extra gps will undertake this
type of training, and then a small number of those
will be involved in the diagnosis, not the four thousand,

(01:58):
but probably around about one hundred. So there'll be different
levels of training for which GPS can elect to go into.
But this is all about making sure that people with
an ADHD diagnosis can get access to that important medication
as effectively as possible, while still making sure that it
is safe and we're delivering the best possible clinical care

(02:19):
to the patient because you.

Speaker 1 (02:21):
Don't want to being rauded like the ndis.

Speaker 3 (02:24):
No, without a doubt, we don't want to see that.
But I've got an enormous amount of trust in our gps.
They're a profession that I think people have a great
deal of trust in. I think we've got some challenges
across our healthcare system, however, in trying to allow people
to access the prescriptions they need or the individuals they need.
So we have to try and allow people within the
system to try and work to our full scope of practice.

(02:46):
We're seeing that we're doing that within our pharmacist at
the moment, and this is an extension of that, using
our highly trained GPS to undertake additional training to provide
this type of care.

Speaker 2 (02:56):
It'll be a lot cheaper, a lot easier to see
a GP than a psychiatry rist.

Speaker 3 (03:01):
Yeah, without a doubt. I mean, we know that psychiatrists
are in hot demand at the moment. We know many
many health professionals are, and we know the work that
they do is incredibly valued but valuable. But we also
know that it's important for people to get access to
this type of support as quickly and as efficiently as
they possibly can. And we believe that GPS are ready

(03:22):
to take that next step and increase their scope of practice.

Speaker 1 (03:26):
There you go, initiative, make a big different stuff happening.
I was recently diagnosed with it.

Speaker 2 (03:31):
Apparently you work with well, I could diagnose you in
a second, and I chose.

Speaker 1 (03:36):
They said, well we could do something about that. Who
diagnosed as an adult? Were you? Yeah, this is a
few years ago, and I just said, look, I've learned
to deal with it. Yeah, and mentally yeah, I mean
you scratch the surface. Team here. Well, someone said to
me you should take riddle and see what it does
to you.

Speaker 3 (03:52):
You don't do that. Make sure you make sure you're
going through the right ways.

Speaker 2 (03:59):
Me, you're not reading ending I mind sweet people's medicine cabinets.

Speaker 3 (04:03):
No, I'm not. I don't do that.

Speaker 1 (04:06):
I'm taking some of Amanda's estrogen medicine. He's very perky, right,
It's always great to talk to you.

Speaker 2 (04:12):
I think this is a great initiative to make a
big difference for families.

Speaker 3 (04:16):
Thank you, always good to chat to you. Thanks a
lot for having me, Ryan park Out, New South Wales
Health Minister. There