In New South Wales, tens of millions of dollars are being spent on fly-in, fly-out doctors — and dozens of towns are at risk of being without a full-time GP in the next decade.
"That's an absolute waste of scarce health services," he said.
The spokesperson said the COVID-19 pandemic reduced the number of international medical graduates entering Australia, which increased the reliance on locums.Rural GP Ian Spencer has spent about half a century practising at Bourke and Wellington in the state's Central West."The cost per shift to hire a locum doctor stops the hospitals from employing two or three nursing staff for a week," he said.
He said the use of locums acted as an additional deterrent to anyone considering working as a rural GP and created a false career path.The number has plummeted in recent years, with the workload of a rural GP, the cost of running a clinic and professional isolation seen as deterrents. The NSW regional health inquiry heard Walgett was among dozens of NSW towns with limited access to medical services.Federal health secretary Brendan Murphy has warned "disruptive changes" are needed to fix the crisis.
Gulgong in central western NSW is one of several towns that has not had a doctor on site at the local hospital during certain periods.
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