February Update
Strong community support for Find Doctors For Beechworth
Thank-you to everyone who has shared information and supported the Find Doctors For Beechworth campaign since we launched it in mid-December.
We’ve been heartened by the community response; both by how many people and groups have been involved and the increased understanding of the national doctor shortage.
So far more than 20 community groups, businesses and countless individuals have helped spread the word. This has meant people in other parts of the region,
Melbourne, Sydney, Canberra and the Gold Coast have been asked to think about working here.
Talking to doctors on the Gold Coast
Lynn Frerichs, president of the Beechworth Chain Gang, spoke to five doctors on the Gold Coast where she used to live and work as a sales rep to medical practices.
“One of my friends is an emergency department physician who is very well connected and has been spreading the word for us. She comes to Beechworth regularly and loves the community, the amazing infrastructure and the landscape,” Lynn said.
“We have so much here that needs to be celebrated. If we attracted a doctor with a family the primary school options here are amazing and we have access to a
regional centre in less time than it would take me to get half-way across the Gold Coast. There are niche groups as well as the regular sporting and service
groups too; I’ve been telling everyone that it’s such a vibrant place to live,” she said.
If you are talking to your family and friends, there’s more information about our Surgery and the lifestyle benefits of living here. https://beechworthsurgery.com.au/work-with-us/
Some locum GPs do stay
Dr John Houston didn’t need convincing about Beechworth’s lifestyle attractions. He had been visiting Beechworth for about 15 years and one day in June 2023
walked into the Surgery and asked if we needed any help!
If you have been cared for by John, you know that he did his first locum here and was so impressed he keeps coming back to the Surgery….and bought a house in
town. In total, he works here for between four and five months each year.
John previously worked in the same Sydney practice for 36 years and then as the CEO of a corporation that had 80 practices with 1000 doctors.
“As part of that role I went to the UK and spoke to doctors about working in Australia and we did attract some. Of course, I’ve now spoken to GPs in Sydney
about making the move here,” John said.
“After running 80 practices, I can tell potential doctors honestly that the quality of the Beechworth Surgery is exceptional. This town has quality senior doctors who are training the new ones coming through and it’s not far for GPs to head to Melbourne for further training.”
Several of our doctors have roles on health policy and practice bodies, when they are not working here, including boards and some work in emergency departments or remote communities. John does the same, providing care for more remote patients through four stints a year with the Royal Flying Doctor Service.
We are looking for more GPs like John who come here for a couple of weeks and then stay.
Your stories
We’re keen to hear from you if you had a conversation with a doctor and include your story in our next update.
We thank those of you who contacted us to offer other support, such as accommodation, should an interested doctor need it.
$1000 reward for the community group of your choice
While we haven’t found a new doctor yet, we knew this was unlikely to happen quickly. The Find Doctors For Beechworth campaign runs until the end of May and the $1000 rewards (three of them) are still available for the community group of your choice, if you find a GP who starts work here.
Letters to MPs
Thank you to those of you who wrote to Helen Haines, Member for Indi and Mark Butler, the federal Health Minister. With an election looming we are hopeful the rural doctor shortage will get more attention and resourcing.
It’s not too late to raise the topic with MPs if you haven’t yet. All the details are in our December update, below.
Nurse practitioner
You may be aware that Steve Voogt has recently set-up the Northeast Nurse Practitioner Service.
A nurse practitioner is a registered nurse (RN) who has advanced education and expertise to diagnose and treat patients.
This may be helpful for some of you when we can’t offer you an appointment, so we will be working with Steve to share his details. You can find out more about how Steve can assist by visiting his Facebook page. His website will be up in coming weeks.
