By opposing the release of the elective surgery waiting lists, Dr Phelps is trying to ensure that any public scrutiny of the efficiency of doctors is kept from the public. There is no merit in this argument. The public can understand that the Internet information needs to be put into context. Doctors take holidays. They have sabbaticals.
Some doctors have only a limited access to particular hospitals.
Some hospitals close during holidays. Other hospitals cut their operating sessions when they run short of money. These are not difficult notions to grasp. Moreover, if some lay people cannot find out these details, their GPs are certainly able to get the information to them. It is the AMA, then, that is providing a self-serving distraction, rather than the State Government.