Lucy Wicks (Robertson, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I am pleased to say there has been a breakthrough for people in my electorate of Robertson on the Central Coast of New South Wales who until now have been finding it difficult to find a local family doctor. In many suburbs, such as Erina, Avoca Beach, Green Point and Killcare, people who have been sick have called up their local GP, only to be told that the books were closed. One mother I spoke to had not been able to get her foster son into see her local family GP for several years because the books had been closed for so long.

Addressing the shortage of doctors was one of the commitments I took to the last election, along with our positive growth plan for the Central Coast. We pledged to look into the unique circumstances facing the Central Coast in attracting doctors—we accepted that more needed to be done. I am pleased to say that this government has listened. I would like to commend the Assistant Minister for Health, Senator Fiona Nash, who has driven this reform process and the Minister for Health, Susan Ley, who joined me on the Central Coast last week to personally hear from doctors. Many doctors have told me that it is difficult to attract and retain GPs on the Central Coast—particularly in my electorate—because they were not adequately resourced. Part of the reason was the outdated District of Workforce Shortage system. Simply put, the DWS system was using data from 2004. This was an issue for GPs because so many suburbs in my electorate were not deemed to be a district of workplace shortage. In fact, one GP practice manager told me he had been trying to fill a place in his surgery for five years, but had not been able to.

Thanks to this government, these changes to the DWS calculations mean that from now on the most up-to-date data will be used to identify areas where there is a doctor shortage, which of course will make it easier to plan and to recruit doctors. We have a rapidly growing population on the Central Coast. The cost and availability of doctors matters a great deal, particularly to people on low incomes. I am confident these changes will benefit our community. Twenty-six suburbs in my electorate are newly eligible under the system, including Avoca Beach, Bensville, Copacabana, Daleys Point, Davistown, Empire Bay, Erina, Erina Heights, Green Point, Killcare, Killcare Heights, Kincumber, Kincumber South, Macmasters Beach, North Avoca, Picketts Valley, Pretty Beach, Saratoga, St Huberts Island, Terrigal, Yattalunga and Wagstaffe.

These changes mean that we are delivering on a commitment to improve the health outcomes for rural, regional and remote Australians through better access to medical services. They help fulfil an important election commitment to the people in my electorate, and I thank the government for its important advocacy in this regard.

Alex Hawke (Mitchell, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

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