Meryl Swanson (Paterson, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Recently our legendary local GP, Dr Chris Boyle, celebrated a remarkable anniversary at the Raymond Terrace Family Medical Practice. Dr Boyle has been there for 40 years. He started practising the same year that Labor started Medicare—1984. Dr Boyle graduated from the University of New South Wales in 1979. Whilst Chris is not my doctor, I seek medical advice from him rather frequently. I like to talk to him about our medical system and how it can be better. I have been known to pass on that advice to the health minister. When he graduated in 1979, 50 per cent of graduates from medical schools in Australia went on to be general practitioners. Today, it's about 12 per cent. We clearly need more GPs, and we need to be encouraging our brightest young medical minds to embrace general practice again.

I want to thank Chris, because he has walked the talk for more than 40 years in general practice land. He has encouraged young doctors and has really gone above and beyond. After he graduated from medical school, he spent time at the Royal Newcastle Hospital—in those days, it overlooked the beach and people went there to convalesce by the beautiful seaside, as they did in those days—and, as a resident doctor, he was also a registrar at Narromine. After finishing his residency and after a time in the UK at Sheffield doing obstetrics, he came back to Australia and joined the Raymond Terrace Family Practice, as I mentioned earlier, in 1984.

It's an amazing career, highlighted by his generosity of spirit for our newest doctors through his role as a GP supervisor, and he currently has a role teaching the GP registrars who rotate through the practice. His passion and dedication for the development and progress of GPs locally continued through his appointment to the board of the local division of general practice, which is an appointment he has held for a number of years, and he now holds the position of chair. Dr Boyle also undertakes teaching with the college training program. He's an examiner for the Royal Australian College of General Practitioners and he also accredits GP practices.

Dr Boyle has taken a special interest over the years in men's health and in managing chronic diseases, such as diabetes and heart disease. The practice manager at Raymond Terrace Family Practice says:

Dr Boyle is loved and respected by patients and staff alike. He always makes time for people and puts extraordinary care into his work. His work ethic is second to none.

He really is a legend, and he's certainly an icon in Raymond Terrace and surrounding communities. His patient base consists of generations of families, including a number of whom he delivered. In addition to his GP work, he's also been the part-owner of the practice at Raymond Terrace for many decades. The practice has been a longstanding successful business, whose staff enjoy a harmonious culture, and that's largely thanks to Dr Boyle leading the way.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, Dr Chris Boyle and his colleagues at Raymond Terrace Family Practice rapidly responded by stepping forward to provide the flagship gold-star service. The Raymond Terrace Respiratory Clinic, as it was called, had a team that deftly developed and implemented new forward-thinking models of care, which provided a safe space for people with respiratory illnesses to be seen. To facilitate improved care for people isolating at home, they were strong advocates for telehealth and embraced opportunities for technology, being early adopters of telehealth, e-scripts, MHR and e-referrals. The RTRC provided local peer leadership by sharing their practical experience on infection control and protection and thorough clinical assessment, and they increased access to much-needed primary care. The team saw and assessed 23,157 people from its community and provided 52,000 vaccinations. It's just incredible.

Congratulations, Dr Chris Boyle. You are a legend in our community. Thank you for your service to it.