South West Healthcare's GP clinic has been left with just one part-time doctor as it struggles to replace departing staff.
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In mid-2021 the South West Medical Centre was thriving with five permanent GPs, but by early 2022 it had dropped to three, and when two more doctors departed in recent weeks only a single GP remained.
That doctor only works part time, with the first available online appointment six weeks away. Vaccination and nursing appointments are still readily available. SWH said another doctor was on maternity leave until mid-2023.
SWH primary and community health executive director Kerryn Anderson said the service was working to replace the staff and would hire locum doctors in the meantime.
"There may be extended waiting times to see a GP in the short-term, but we are working hard to ensure opening times remain flexible and that we can offer a mixture of day-time and after-hours appointments to suit the community's needs," Ms Anderson said.
Of the five doctors at the clinic in 2021, none remain, with some moving to nearby GP clinics and others going interstate. The Standard asked SWH why so many doctors had left the clinic over the past 12 months, but did not receive a response.
The loss of permanent doctors has also forced SWMC's registrar (trainee) GP to leave the centre because there are no supervisors available for training.
In a letter to patients, Ms Anderson said the recruitment issues were a national problem.
"Opening times for the medical centre during this time will vary as we endeavour to continue to remain open outside of normal business hours on some days for patients who need that flexibility," she said.
"If you have accessed care at another clinic recently and are able to access further care there in the interim, we encourage you to do so."
SWMC was set up in 2012 to provide Warrnambool's only late night and Sunday GP clinic. One of its key functions was to take pressure off Warrnambool Base Hospital's emergency department by catering to non-acute patients who would otherwise end up in ED.
The Standard asked the hospital how the clinic's opening hours had changed, and whether its struggles had added further pressure to the ED, but did not receive a response.
Ms Anderson said there would be "a nurse on site every day who will be able to provide advice on other ways to access care where you would normally see a GP but cannot wait for an appointment".
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