Hundreds of residents left in despair as regional GP crisis hits Warwick
‘Our big issue is retention’: With residents facing months-long wait times, one Rose City doctor reveals the reasons why the town is struggling to hang onto its GPs.
Warwick
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Rose City residents have been left in despair by the shortage of doctors and medical practitioners, a growing crisis for regional and rural communities across Australia.
More than 100 Warwick residents told the Daily News via social media they found it difficult to book an appointment with a doctor in town, with several claiming they had to wait months at a time.
“Can’t get through on the phones, either. After trying for three hours, I drove there to make an appointment. OK if you don’t want one for a month,” resident Canpeg Deb wrote.
“(It) takes a few weeks to see my doctor,” fellow resident Casie Lee said.
“All the time, especially if you want to see a doctor in particular,” Trevor N Kay Lucas added.
According to Condamine Medical Centre co-owner Lynton Hudson, the key factor behind Warwick’s GP shortage was not attracting younger doctors but keeping them in the area.
“Our biggest issue is retention. One of the biggest things that we know is the people who will stay out here are people who come from country areas,” Dr Hudson said.
“The second thing, which I think is the case in a lot of professional jobs, is the partner … which I never really see discussed anywhere, but it’s a huge factor.
“You get a person who comes out and really loves the job, but their partner either can’t get a job that suits them or they can’t get one at all.
“It’s about us helping to make the town a good place for them to live and work.”
Dr Hudson agreed the high GP turnover in Warwick and other regional areas not only made it difficult for residents to book appointments, but could also detract from their experience as a patient.
“I think it’s nice to have continuity of care, but having said that we are aware of (the issue) and we really try to work on that,” he said.
“We treat each other very similarly, because it’s something we are really aware of and people changing from different doctors.”
Disparities in medical funding in rural areas compared to larger cities was a key target in last week’s federal budget announcement, with doctors given increased Medicare incentives for bulk-billing patients and annual retention bonuses for nurses working in aged care settings.
Rural Doctors Association of Australia president Dr John Hall welcomed the budget changes, hoping they would be the first of many to come.
“RDAA has advocated strongly for a new approach to health policy that differentiates between large regional cities and smaller rural and remote towns,” Dr Hall.
“(Therefore) reflecting the different challenges faced by health professionals in providing healthcare in smaller and more communities, and faced by rural and remote patients in accessing care.”
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