Half of the psychiatrists in NSW’s public service are preparing to resign. Here’s why

Rose Jackson, the NSW minister for mental health, says the state government recognises ‘there is a really legitimate claim for more support for our psychiatrists’. Photograph: Jessica Hromas/The Guardian

The doctors’ union is warning that the New South Wales health system “will go off a cliff” next week if the resignation of more than 200 psychiatrists – half the cohort – comes into effect.

The specialist doctors indicated they would be submitting their resignations in December amid a standoff with the government over concerns about pay and the state of the mental healthcare system.