MANY regional areas in NSW are suffering from a General Practitioner (GP) shortage and it is taking locals longer to see a doctor.

Parts of Port Stephens are currently classified as a Distribution Priority Area (DPA) region, a status that identifies areas where people don’t have enough access to doctors, based on the needs of the community; however large parts of the Port Stephens LGA do not have this classification.

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DPA is calculated by comparing the actual level of GP services provided to a GP catchment with the level of services the same community should receive if they were receiving benchmark level GP Services.

The benchmark(s) for each GP catchment are determined based on the composition of their communities, considering their demographics, including their age, sex and Socio-Economic Indexes for Areas (SEIFA).

The DPA classification does not guarantee a doctor, but it allows medical practices in DPA catchments to recruit doctors who trained overseas.

It is one of many Federal Coalition Government initiatives to address the maldistribution of the medical workforce and encourage doctors under location restrictions to work in regional, rural and remote communities.

If an area is assessed with lower than benchmark access to GP services, then they are given DPA status.

Liberal candidate for Paterson Brooke Vitnell told News Of The Area that Labor’s recent announcement to make the whole of the Hunter a DPA region will put Port Stephens at a disadvantage.

“It is disappointing that the Labor Federal opposition would seek to claim this as a ‘win’ for the community.

“All it does is reveal a complete lack of understanding of the Port Stephens community.

“Labor is late to the party on this issue and this reflects that they poorly understand the nature of rural health or the regions already with a DPA status – Port Stephens is already listed as DPA under the Federal Liberal Nationals Government.

“This is what DPA is for – smaller rural towns and villages – not large regional cities like Newcastle.

“If Labor gives DPA to Newcastle, as they plan to, clinics in Port Stephens will be competing to employ the same doctors as the clinics in Newcastle, a larger city.

“Under the plans of the Liberal Nationals Government, the end result will be more access to GPs for families in our rapidly growing region.

“Being able to see a doctor in the timeframe that you need to, I know, is of paramount importance to the Port Stephens community.

“The health needs of our community are a priority for me, and I know this is a priority of the Federal Liberal Nationals Government,” said Ms Vitnell.

By Marian SAMPSON