Why young doctors could be leaving this town
A tiny northern NSW town is facing a medical shortfall because of a major Federal Government policy shift.
Tweed Heads
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MURWILLUMBAH is facing a potential medical shortfall because of a major Federal Government policy shift.
Young doctors could be forced to leave Murwillumbah to complete their training after classification of the river town moved from rural to urban.
The policy change, introduced on July 1, means medical trainees, GPs and undergraduates working under rural scholarships or pathways will be required to move as far west as Casino.
It could mean a shortfall of students to a University Centre for Rural Health (UCRH)campus. GPs will also be short-changed, receiving less money for each bulk billing patient from January 1, 2020.
An email to post graduate doctors last month said they had six months to find new training plans.
The UCRH say they are now examining the implications of the rezoning for programs, are exploring options to adjust programs.
"As a result of this change, practices in Murwillumbah will now … only be available to general pathway registrars and no longer to rural pathway registrars," the email said.
Industry insiders say changes could leave the town starved of trainee doctors.
One Murwillumbah doctor "bonded" to work in rural areas for a number of years said many young doctors would have to consider moving.
"There will be quite a few people impacted, not just the registrars," she said. "When training most doctors are required to do at least six months in a non-major centre. Now Murwillumbah is not an option for that portion of study.
"It seems ridiculous we are seen to be the same as the Gold Coast."
How many doctors will be affected by the policy change is unclear. The adoption of the Monash Modified Model (MMM) policy by the Federal Government also means bulk billing incentives for Murwillumbah GPs will be reduced.
At the moment, GPs in Murwillumbah receive $9.50 for every bulk billing patient. That will drop to $6.30 because of the reclassification.
Murwillumbah's grading was changed due to the census results of 2016, putting the town, with a population of 9000, in the same category as Brisbane, Gold Coast and Tweed.
A spokesman for the Australian Bureau of Statistics said improved infrastructure such as roads led to reclassifications from rural to urban.
Federal Member for Richmond Justine Elliot, who rallied against similar reclassifications in 2015, said incentives needed to be in place to attract medical professionals.
"Murwillumbah is a renowned training centre for young doctors, it is going to be much harder to support and attract people to the area without these incentives in place," she said.
"I find it hard to believe the model can find Murwillumbah to be an urban centre."
The NSW Medical Association did not respond to requests for comment before deadline.
Originally published as Why young doctors could be leaving this town
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