Some communities are “GP Desert”, and there are too few GPs so that everyone can receive the treatment when everyone needs. This community is generally painful and poorer than other areas in Australia, but less treatment and higher fees.
In the 2025 federal elections, all parties must try to change this. Labor or Union, Major or Minority, the following governments must support the local system to establish a minimum level of access to GP treatment and to fill the worst gap.
People in the GP desert are missing caring.
About 500,000 Australians live in the GP desert. These are the community The bottom 5% GP service per person. Most GP Deserts are located in Queensland’s Remote Queensland, Western and Northern Territory, and some are in Canberra.
GP desert people 40% less GP service Than the national average. This means that the required inspection, screening and pharmaceutical management provided by GPS are less.
Nurses and Aboriginal health agents help to prevent some gaps, but even GP deserts are not close to catching other areas.
And some people completely miss. Last year, 8% of people aged 65 and over in this area did not see GP at all compared to less than 1% of other countries.
I miss the poor and sick places every year
The GP desert is in the worst place. This community is usually more painful and poor, so you need to be cared for more than other areas in Australia.
People in the GP desert are almost two more chances of going to the hospital with good primary care or death as an inevitable cause.
Most GP deserts are 40%of wealth, but they pay more. The patients in the GP desert are: Bulk 6 percentage points are less than the national average.
I miss this community every year. While headlines occur while the national mass claim rate rises and falls, the continuous gap between GP management is ignored. The same community is much lower than the national average for more than 10 years.
The policy of strengthening rural primary care is not enough.
Since most GP deserts are rural areas, recent policies to increase rural primary care can be slightly helpful.
The government has invested $ 3.5 billion due to the increase in the cost of the burden. Triple bulk billing payment for the most disadvantaged people. These payments are much higher for clinics in rural areas. an Last year, we will increase rural bulk claims. It is an initial mark that can be in operation.
Sera Disayar/SHUTTERSTOCK
New country Medical school and program Students who come and train in rural areas It is more likely to work in them. “Rural generalist ” Pathway recognizes GPs that trained additional technologies such as obstetrics and gynecology or mental health services.
But a wide range of rural policy is not enough. Not all rural areas are GP deserts, not all GP deserts. Australia also requires a more customized approach.
The local system can work
Some communities have left the problem in their hands.
In Tasmania’s East Coast As a result of retirement in 2020, only one GP remained.Forced people to travel to another area for treatment. This was a lot of problems with other cities in this region, such as Swanji and Bisino, and rural Tasmania.
I desperately have a regional council A $ 90 medical charges have been introduced Funds for the new clinic. It is also being implemented New multi -field treatment approachCollect many other health professionals to provide treatment at a single contact point and reduce pressure on GP. Residents spend more time and effort to be cared for more and to adjust individual promises.
New South Wales’ Murrumbbidgee took a different approach. there, Training doctors maintain a single employer Through their placement. This means that they can work in a clinic where the federal government funds and a state -managed hospital without losing employment benefits. This helps the trainees are closely linked to the community and the patient. The success of Murrambidgee was inspired by similar exams in other areas. NSW,,, Namhoju,,, Queensland and Tasmania.
These are promising approaches, but they collected funds that were burdened with the community to prevent holes. Without safe funds, these modifications are fragmentary and unstable Bidding war is in danger To attract GP to leave the poor community.
Australia must guarantee the minimum level of GP treatment.
The federal government must guarantee minimal general practices for all communities. If Medicare and other sources of funds are maintained below the relevant level for many years, the funding must automatically broke the gap.
The Federal and State Governments must be responsible for fixing the GP desert. In this area, there are usually a small population and a clinical clinical and limited infrastructure. Therefore, the government must cooperate to make the most of the lack of resources.
Stephen Barnes/SHUTTERSTOCK
All GP deserts are different, so funds should be flexible. Sometimes this solution can only be as simple as helping additional clinic staff. Other communities can introduce remote health for establishing new clinics or everyday checkups. There is no lack of ideas on how to close the difference in treatment, and the problem is to support funds.
If you raise all GP deserts to the top of the desert critical price or ensure a minimum of 4.5GP service per year, the government’s annual Medicare payment costs more than $ 10 million.
Providing additional services in the GP desert will be more expensive than the average. However, even if the cost is doubled or tripled, it will be only a few of the billions of additional incentives that the GP reaches the mass bill and will change the community that requires the most help.
The GP desert did not appear overnight. The consecutive government has left the community with too little care. The upcoming federal elections provide opportunities for all parties to be modified.
If they did so, the next government’s terms could see the GP desert to remove good things.
