Wide repercussions from Leongatha Healthcare closure

IT’S not just the Leongatha and district community or the staff of the Leongatha Healthcare Group which has been hit by the sudden closure of the generational clinic in Leongatha.

Other medical centres across the region from Phillip Island, Wonthaggi and Inverloch, to Korumburra and even in the Latrobe Valley have had to scramble to make arrangements as patients from Leongatha spread out for care.

The small Inverloch Healthcare group immediately posted a message on its Facebook page alerting locals to the fact that the had to close their Hocdoc booking platform temporarily while they assess the situation.

A spokesperson for the clinic said the news of Leongatha’s closure had come as a shock to everyone and they were liaising with doctors and hospitals to see what might be done.

“We are taking new patients, but we are only a small clinic and had very limited capacity,” said a spokesperson for Inverloch Healthcare.

The Foster and Toora Medical Centres, while sympathetic to the plight of Leongatha patients, have advised that they will not be accepting additional appointments.

“At this time, we will not be able to accommodate appointments for new patients who do not receive their regular care from FMC,” said Foster/Toora on its Facebook page today.

See details below.

Both Wonthaggi Medical Group and Korumburra Medical Group have responded by opening up more appointments, but again, these are limited.

“We want to help in any way we can whether that’s with re-employment of staff or doctors,” said practice manager at the Wonthaggi, Gayle Bloch.

Wonthaggi Medical Group has clinics at Wonthaggi, Inverloch and Newhaven.

“We have some new registrars coming on staff in February with the new rotation and we’ll have more capacity then.

“But if there are new patients in the area that need to see a doctor, we are accepting appointments.”

Likewise at the Korumburra Medical Centre.

“We’ve opened up appointments to help Leongatha patients and we have three more doctors coming on in a few days’ time, so we’ll have more capacity then,” said practice manager at Korumburra Lisa Bain.

Korumburra will also be welcoming some new registrars at the start of February which will also increase capacity.

Meanwhile, unsuspecting patients have been turning up at a closed Leongatha Healthcare clinic all morning where Eastern Victoria MP Melina Bath had taken it upon herself to speak to patients, direct them to the Leongatha hospital as required or to discuss other arrangements.

Ellen Tesser, was one of those who arrived on Monday morning from Ruby for an appointment, only to find the clinic closed.

She was pleased of the opportunity to chat with Ms Bath about the situation and what to do next.

But Ms Tesser was thinking more about the staff at the clinic than herself.

“That’s really sad for all the staff,” she said when she heard the clinic had closed.

It had been a busy morning at the Leongatha hospital where Robert Pearce was one of those displaced Leongatha Healthcare patients who had turned up to see a doctor.

“I have an appointment on Wednesday but my daughter told me over the weekend that they were closed. I’ve come up here to see if I can see someone,” he said.

“I’ve been going there for years and got very good service. I think it's ridiculous what's been happening.

"A lot of people are going to be disappointed.”

He said the biggest problem was no one knows what's going on or what to do if they've got an appointment.

A spokesperson for the Gippsland Southern Health Service said they would be making a statement this afternoon.

Here’s what Inverloch Healthcare posted this morning on their Facebook page:

“Hello Inverloch,

“You will now all be aware of the sudden closure of Leongatha Healthcare. As a result we have had to close our hocdoc booking platform temporarily. For our existing patients, please call the clinic or pop in to make an appt. This will be back up in coming days.

“We are working with all the other GP clinics locally on supporting the Leongatha community and ensuring that care can be provided to patients.

“We do have limited availablity for new patients with Dr Scott Freeman and Dr Martn Hodgson. Please call the clinic to enquire.

“This is a very stressful time for our broader community and we ask for patience and kindness from all as our phones are working overtime.”

What the Foster-Toora doctors had to say

Re Leongatha Health Care Closure

“We are sad and concerned to hear the announcement regarding the closure of Leongatha Health Care. We know that this clinic, like ours, serves a pivotal role in its rural community and we know that there will be many anxious patients, staff and doctors alike in the coming days.

“We are communicating with remaining medical staff to be abreast of changes and do what we can to support them through whatever transition occurs. We hope that a solution can be found to fill the gap this will leave.

“We also acknowledge that our own service is already under significant appointment pressure and our priority remains serving our existing Foster and surrounds community.

“At this time, we will not be able to accommodate appointments for new patients who do not receive their regular care from FMC. We encourage patients in this situation to utilise the alternative suggested services in Leongatha.

“We will await further news and continue to keep everyone updated on any changes that will impact FMC.”