Canberra Hospital will still have a fortnightly clinic for gynaecological oncology services after plans for a permanent clinic have been scuttled.
However, the service will be operated by multiple providers instead of the same specialists who visit the nation's capital on a fortnightly basis.
The ACT government had promised to establish a permanent surgery clinic for gynaecological cancers but these plans were thrown into jeopardy last year.
However, Canberra Health Services has reaffirmed its commitment to the establishment of a permanent unit.
Dr Greg Robertson from the Royal Hospital for Women has provided a fortnightly clinic to Canberra Hospital for more than two decades but his last day will be this Friday as he will go on long service leave.
The Canberra Times asked Canberra Health Services whether the clinic would continue beyond January 13.
The spokesman responded: "The service will continue into the new year beyond 13 January 2023 through several providers, with discussions occurring to ensure continuity of services into the future until the permanent clinic is established in Canberra".
The response did not include what service providers would provide the clinic.
Canberra Health Services recruited for a gynaecological oncologist last year but only offered the successful candidate one full day of surgery a month.
The candidate, Dr Leon Foster, asked whether this could be extended but the service was not forthcoming and he was forced to decline the offer.
Gynaecology-oncology is an incredibly rare subspecialty and there are only about 60 specialists in Australia.
Canberra Health Services would not provide the exact number of candidates who applied for the role but only it was "fewer than five".
The organisation has said the service would expand once demand increased. This is despite sustained lobbying from doctors who worked in the fortnightly clinic showing how the current caseload already well exceeds demand.
Dr Robertson said last month in his most recent consultations he had seen about 10 to 15 patients and more than half of those were new patients.
"I'm fully over the line, it's just been so busy and we can't really maintain the level of care required in the current format for a long time," he said.
Doctors have said Canberra Health Services proposed "phased approach" will struggle to attract any specialists. Dr Robertson said he could not see another opportunity in his lifetime for a service.
It is also understood Westmead Hospital advertised for a full-time gynaecologist oncologist three months ago but had no applicants.
The Canberra Times has also been provided information about other permanent gynaecology-oncology units across Australia.
The ACT is the only jurisdiction where there is no permanent clinic.
Tasmania has two gynaecological oncologists and there are about four days of surgery each month. The Northern Territory has one gynaecological oncologist who has about three days of surgery a month.
A Canberra clinic could service a population larger than both Tasmania and Northern Territory as it would include the surrounding region, which, combined with the ACT's total, would be nearly 900,000.
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