New Doctor
New Doctor was very much the brainchild of an enthusiastic and energetic young journalist, Lee Patterson, who conceived both the idea and The Title. At the Doctors Reform Society Canberra conference in 1974, Lee Patterson undertook to establish an editorial committee in Sydney to produce a national journal, to be published four times per year (16).
In 1976, the first issue of New Doctor was published as the official journal of The Doctors Reform Society of NSW, Victoria and the ACT (17:3). Lee Patterson served variously as press secretary, editorial consultant, general manager and public relations adviser. He left through illness in 1983. Tributes to his work were given by Keith Benn and Andrew Refshauge in Issue 61 at the time of the 20 year celebration. New Doctor was not intended as a purely political journal. For the first issue and for many years, it carried this notice:
New Doctor is published, not only to reflect and promote the general philosophical beliefs and aims of DRS, but to serve as a forum for the constructive discussion and evaluation of alternative methods of health care delivery, the improvement of relations and understanding between doctors and the community they serve - and other topics of interest to the medical profession.
New Doctor does not accept advertising for cigarettes or tobacco products and pharmaceutical advertisements are screened by the editorial Board prior to publication for ethical suitability (17).
The first issue of New Doctor also included the Constitution of the DRS, NSW. The Aims of the society were:
(a) To promote needed reforms in the health-care delivery system. (b) To improve communication between doctors, allied health professionals, the public and governments, regardless of their political persuasion. (c) To study and promote social and environmental reforms in areas relevant to medical practice. (17:46-47) . New Doctor was at first published quarterly but costs have now reduced this to twice yearly. One difficulty has been the drop off in select advertising which originally made New Doctor virtually self-supporting. New Doctor has kept faith with its original aims. It remains the flagship of DRS, and the major ‘other’ voice among the medical profession. Since Lee Patterson, the editorship has passed through a long line of editors and editorial committees, all unpaid volunteers, and for all it has been a rewarding experience. In 2006, New Doctor will be 30 years old. Over that period this journal has covered not only Medibank, Medicare and the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme, but also a wide range of medical and social issues including women’s, youth and Aboriginal health, medical education, abortion, euthanasia, unnecessary surgery, globalisation and the US-Free Trade Agreement, to name just a few. On two occasions, joint issues with other organisations have been published: Issue 29 in 1983 with Social Alternatives and Impact and Issue 31 in 1984 with the Legal Service Bulletin.
The DRS WA undertook the production of two issues of New Doctor focussed on Aboriginal Health (Issue 70 Summer 1998-99 and Issue 77 Winter 2002).
The DRS acknowledges the work of its editors, and the contributions of its writers and cartoonists. Two DRS office secretaries deserve special mention for their work with New Doctor – Lenore Baxter, who worked with the DRS for years before returning to her home in New Zealand, and Carol Zarkesh, who left the organisation at the end of 2003. New Doctor has helped give the DRS a public profile larger than its membership would suggest, a tribute to the work of its editors and activists. In 1997, after 21 years in the hands of the DRS NSW, the major editorship passed to DRS Queensland.