Free new nurse program in Adelaide GP clinics to ease pressure on EDs

Nurse practitioners will treat patients – for free – in selected GP clinics under a pilot scheme to try to ease pressure on hospital EDs and provide more options for primary health care.

Highly-trained nurses will diagnose and treat patients in six GP clinics – for free – under a pilot program to ease pressure on hospital emergency departments and in turn ambulance ramping.

The Nurse Practitioner Primary Care Pilot will fund six nurse practitioners over the next year to diagnose and treat a wide range of health conditions in GP clinics as part of a multidisciplinary team.

Locations for the nurse practitioners will be decided after an expression of interest process with four likely to be in metropolitan Adelaide and two in regional areas.

Nurse practitioners can assess and diagnose patients, request and interpret tests, prescribe therapies and medications, and receive and make referrals to other health practitioners.

The pilot plan is part of a $10m investment from the federal government to develop new ways to improve primary care in South Australia and reduce pressure on hospital EDs.

The funding is split between two programs – $2.6m to the nurse practitioner pilot, and $7.5m to expand the Healthdirect services with the GP Extension Service and the Consumer Front Door.

The GP Extension Service is available 24/7 to connect people to a telehealth appointment with a GP for urgent medical assessment, particularly when they are unable to access a local GP appointment.

Since the service was introduced in July 2023, more than 4300 people have been connected to a GP telehealth appointment, with 87 per cent avoiding an ED presentation.

The Consumer Front Door is available to people with urgent, but non-life-threatening health care needs.

Operating 9am-9pm daily, the caller is transferred to a SA-based virtual care service and then, where required, connected to a face-to-face service for assessment, support and treatment.

It has triaged more than 1600 people, with 75 per cent avoiding a trip to the ED.

South Australians can access these services by calling the free Healthdirect hotline on 1800 022 222.

Federal Health And Aged Care Minister Mark Butler. Picture: NCA NewsWire / Martin Ollman

Federal Health Minister Mark Butler said the government is working to strengthen Medicare.

“That means different things in different places. For South Australia, building a greater role for nurse practitioners will mean more people can be treated in the primary care system,” he said.

“At the same time, bolstering the state’s Healthdirect services will offer even more options for South Australian families, especially outside of standard business hours.

“These additional services – alongside our five SA Medicare Urgent Care Clinics – are working together to keep emergency departments free for critically ill patients while ensuring all South Australians have ready access to primary health care.”

Health Minister Chris Picton. Picture: NCA NewsWire / Morgan Sette

Health Minister Chris Picton said the moves give people more options to receive free primary health care when they need it, closer to home.

“Nurse practitioners are the best trained and skilled nurses – and already provide care for thousands of people in emergency departments,” he said.