Hi Everyone,
They say that when something awesome is about to happen, something else comes along to challenge you, to make sure you really deserve the prize.
This week it was an ear infection, specifically my son’s ear infection, a week before we are due to fly to Thredbo for a snow holiday.
Of course, every doctor’s surgery in town was completely booked out this week, with the public holiday making it impossible to get him in anywhere.
So, with my son in tears in the back seat, we drove to Proserpine Hospital on Monday night.
Multiple games of Top Trumps, a little Netflix and three hours later we got to see a doctor who confirmed it was indeed an ear infection and gave us the last bottle of antibiotic ear drops they had. Phew!
We left the Emergency Department marvelling at how our little country hospital does so much.
They were clearly under the pump, but they still managed to service the needs of a community that are suffering from a severe doctor shortage.
And all for free, we did not pay a cent, even for the drops.
While we were there, a nurse confirmed that one of the main reasons they are busy, especially with so many ‘minor cases’, is because it is impossible to get a same day doctor’s appointment.
What are we going to do about this?
I understand there are government incentives offering bonuses to doctors who move to regional areas, but so far this does not appear to have made a difference.
Recently, a massive budget cut impacted pharmacies around the country when prescriptions changed to 60 days instead of 30, halving their prescription fees.
Could this loss have been counteracted with another policy that perhaps trained pharmacists to diagnose basic illness such as ear infections?
A simple online check list of what a doctor would ask, and we could have received medication without clogging up the Emergency Department at the hospital.
Could doctor’s surgeries be required to reserve three appointments per day for emergency yet standard illnesses that require immediate prescription?
Do you have thoughts on this? Write to rachael@mackayandwhitsundaylife.com.
Rach
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