http://www.theaustralian.com.au/business/aviation/flaws-in-pilots-medical-portal-put-doctors-off/news-story/8c80c201239cd8c50369f3cf8a380aa1
Flaws in pilots medical portal put doctors off
12:00AM JULY 8, 2016
Mitchell Bingemann
Doctors fed up with a backlog within the aviation regulator’s new online medical portal are refusing to conduct medicals on *pilots, saying the new system is costing them too much time and money.
Designated Aviation Medical Examiners (DAMEs) — who conduct medicals on pilots in accordance with the Civil Aviation Safety Regulations — have reached out to The Australian to express their frustration at the new system, which they say is taking twice as long to navigate compared to the previous system.
The frustration of the doctors has fed into the list of perceived problems with the online medical record system that is straining under a backlog of 2281 certificate applications that have not been assessed within 20 days of being received.
The logjam was created with the introduction of Civil Aviation Safety Authority’s online medical records system, which has been in operation since March 21.
The new system was meant to streamline the application process and create a repository of pilot medical records for future use, but teething problems with the system has instead created a slowdown that is now affecting thousands of pilots.
Last month, The Australian revealed that 170 pilots were within 14 days of having their medical certificates expire — which will effectively ground them and put them out of work — as the backlog continues to grow and slow down the processing system. But the number of medicals within 14 days of expiry has now grown to 227. CASA has put these applications on an urgent priority list.
A recent survey about the new system conducted by the Australian Federation of Air Pilots — the largest industrial and professional association for commercial pilots in Australia with over 3500 commercial pilots — collated 19 pages of complaints about the system.
In total, some 69 per cent of the 312 respondents to the survey have reported problems and major delays with the online system. The most common complaints are that it is slow or not working, recurring glitches resulting in incomplete applications and payment problems.
The problems are not only causing headaches for pilots, but also the doctors who administer the medicals required by CASA to fly.
“(My) DAME informed me that the process is now so flawed he will cease being a DAME. The added administration and bureaucratic process no longer makes it worth his while,” said one pilot.
Another pilot said his DAME is now requiring a 90-minute appointment to complete the medical process and submit the required information to CASA.
“Finding a doctor in Brisbane who was willing to do my medical was difficult. The first three that I called refused to do pilot medicals anymore due to the complexity and lack of training in the new system,” said another pilot.
A CASA spokeswoman acknowledged there were ongoing issues with the portal, but said there were 834 active DAMEs “who appear to be meeting demand”.
“CASA is aware of DAMES having issues with using MRS and has two support officers available to help DAMEs during business hours,” she said.
“CASA has also just completed one-on-one training with 51 DAMEs who were having difficulty with using the new system, which was well received. CASA is also looking into other ways of providing ongoing training for MRS to DAMEs.”
In the past week CASA has issued 533 medicals, which was 61