Regional towns in New South Wales have lost face-to-face access to doctors, with the Department of Health failing to renew contracts with visiting medical officers (VMO).
The publicly owned Multi-Purpose Service (MPS) in Gulgong has been without a doctor since June, when the Western NSW Local Health District (WNSWLHD) failed to renew the contract of Nebras Yahya.
Dr Yahya said the department wanted to reduce the pay of his VMO contract by 40 per cent and support more patients with telehealth.
"They [patients] are not very convinced to go and see a doctor on a videocall," he said.
The WNSWLHD said it was actively trying to recruit a doctor for the Gulgong MPS.
"Recruiting health professionals to regional, rural and remote areas is a challenge nationwide and not just confined to our region," a spokesperson said.
Dr Yahya is still in Gulgong working at a private practice and said he would renew the contract with the MPS if the department offered similar terms to the original arrangement.
"I think they [the community] have the idea that I don't want to go there [the MPS]," he said.
Town fights back
Gulgong resident Sharelle Fellows has started a petition to reinstate a doctor at the Gulgong MPS.
"I was prompted to start the petition by a friend of mine's husband, who has a complex health condition and is non-verbal," she said.
"And the consultation was by telehealth, rather than the doctor who is familiar with his entire history."
The petition has more than 2,000 signatures, which Ms Fellows says is a clear indication that the people of Gulgong do not want to rely on telehealth services.
"It's just not satisfactory, and there's a lot of disquiet in the community about that fact," she said.
The WNSWLHD said the budget for the Gulgong MPS was more than $3 million and the community still had access to general practitioners.
"Clinical staff at the Gulgong MPS are supported by a range of innovative telehealth services that have proven successful in supporting rural health services," a spokesperson said.
Other towns losing services
It is believed that a similar contract dispute led to the loss of a doctor in Coolah, and the closure of the town's private health facility as a result.
The Rural & Remote Medical Service wrote to patients informing them the privately run Coolah Medical Facility would close in mid-July because the WNSWLHD had failed to renegotiate a contract with the town's VMO, who worked at the private practice as well as the MPS.
The Member for Dubbo, Dugald Saunders, said he was working towards an outcome that benefited everyone.
"Everyone concedes that telehealth and video technology has a place, however I think everyone would concede that seeing a doctor face-to-face is sometimes advantageous," he said.
