Portland medical clinic hires three new doctors

The three extra doctors bring Active Health Portland's team of doctors to 10, with the clinic also boasting two medical students, two interns and two registrar GPs.

Clinical director Dr Marg Garde said the record staff numbers at the clinic meant patients could see a doctor on the same day they called to make an appointment.

"We've got more doctors than ever before and it means that we now have appointments available on the day when people call up, although not always with the GP of their first choice," Dr Garde said.

"Last year we had seven doctors but it still wasn't enough to meet the demand. We are aware that some people had been going to Portland District Health's Urgent Care Centre because they couldn't get to see a GP - now we're in a position to help.

"Nobody wants people going to the Urgent Care unless they really have to."

One of the new doctors is a former Portland resident who has returned to live locally, while another is returning from a period of maternity leave.

While the announcement is good news for Portland residents, elsewhere in the region clinics are struggling for GPs as cost pressures and a long-term decline in graduate numbers start to bite.

In Warrnambool the South West Medical Centre doesn't have a single full-time doctor and is relying heavily on locum, or temporary, GPs to plug the gaps.

The clinic has had to reduce its hours and mostly cease its weekend and after-hours service.

South West Healthcare chief executive Craig Fraser said the health service had been searching for staff for well over six months, but he said he didn't see the clinic's opening hours improving any time soon.

Dr Garde said the influx of GPs to the Portland clinic could be traced to several factors.

"I think it reflects that people recognise Portland as a lovely place to live and learn and practice in, but primarily it shows the Deakin University program is working," she said.

The Deakin Rural Community Clinical School rotates medical students through Portland to work alongside rural general practice doctors, and Dr Garde said it was helping keep graduate doctors in the regions.

"One of our registrars is a Deakin graduate and we have more in the wings," she said.

Dr Garde said the fact Deakin medical students would soon be able to do all four years of their degree at the Warrnambool campus would be a further boost for the south-west.

"It is such a good initiative that will have long-term benefits," she said.

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