379 - Activity and Capacity Profile of Transplant Physicians and Centres in Australia and New Zealand

Abstract

Aim: To analyse and report on indicators of haematopoietic cell transplant (HCT), physician time use and HCT centre activity. Method: HCT centres in Australia and New Zealand (A&NZ) were invited to provide demographic and time use details for physicians participating in HCT patient care (HCT physicians). Resource details for all centres were also collected. Results: From a total of 46 centres that were invited to participate, completed data were received from 37 (80%) representing 185 HCT physicians, with a median age of 48 (range 33-72), of whom 31% were female. Just over half of HCT physicians cited prior work experience in large overseas HCT centres (97, 52%) and over one-third (79, 43%) possessed postgraduate qualifications other than specialist training. Total annual average HCT per HCT physician FTE was 14.2 for centres performing both allogeneic and autologous HCT, 6.6 for autologous-only centres and 10.6 for all centres. For all HCT physicians surveyed, the average proportion of time spent on HCT related tasks was 31.7%, while for HCT physicians at allogeneic + autologous centres this was 43.9% and for those at autologous-only centres this figure was 18.9%. For centres that perform both allografts and autografts, there were averages of 4.0 allogeneic HCT annually per HCT bed, and 7.1 allogeneic HCT annually per HCT physician FTE. Projections of the A&NZ HCT physician workforce indicated that the numbers of HCT physicians are likely to stay within the region of 170 to 190 for the next 10 years, while HCT activity will likely continue to climb steadily. Conclusion: Healthcare and government authorities should be prepared to enable and support HCT activity of greater numbers and complexity in A&NZ in the future.