Senior clinicians disagree about Canberra Hospital early warning system, Rachel Stephen-Smith says

Labor and the Greens amended a motion from opposition health spokeswoman Leanne Castley, which called on the government to make improvements to the system.

There has been a review into the system over the past 12 months and Health Minister Rachel Stephen-Smith said the government had sought feedback from clinicians across the hospital.

She said the review was prompted by disagreements by senior clinicians about whether the system used by Canberra Health Services was the best one.

Ms Stephen-Smith said the review found there was no clear evidence that one system was better than another.

"They all have their pros and cons. What really matters is [that] clinicians are using the system, are escalating appropriately and are responding to the conditions of their patients," she said.

But a review won't be formally released. Ms Stephen-Smith said there were no specific documents and it was based on discussions and research.

Public calls to change the early warning system were prompted after the Australian Medical Association ACT branch president Walter Abhayaratna said the system should be tweaked.

He said the system did not often allow for monitoring to be escalated on one factor alone, such as an increasing heart rate.

The ACT government has been urged to consider systems in Victoria and NSW.

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Ms Stephen-Smith said the AMA was reflecting the view of some senior clinicians who wanted it changed. She defended the system, saying it did allow for care to be escalated based on one factor alone.

"We certainly hear from clinicians that sometimes the observations aren't necessarily telling you that there's a problem but your gut is telling you there is a problem," she said.

"The current system absolutely enables clinicians, whether they are nurses or doctors to escalate to some more senior or specialised care if they are concerned."

The Health Minister sought to reassure Canberrans there was a system in place and health workers were trained in using the system.

Ms Castley said, following the debate, she was not left with any confidence in the system.

"We need a simple system that parents have an assurance will work and it's what the minister needs to do to ensure Canberra parents that we have the best system in place," she said.

Ms Stephen-Smith also announced the government would appoint an independent child and adolescent clinical services panel to bring together actions and recommendations from recent reviews.

The panel is expected to be announced in coming weeks and will be engaged for a 12-month period. This could be extended following a review.

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