19 December 2017

GPs urge Tasmanian Government to recommit to preventive healthcare

The Royal Australian College of General Practitioners (RACGP) has called on the Tasmanian government to recommit to preventive healthcare to keep Tasmanians healthy and out of hospitals.

RACGP President Dr Bastian Seidel said Tasmania’s political leaders must urgently review several components of the state’s healthcare system in order to improve health services for all Tasmanians.

“Given the clear impact general practice has on health it makes sense that our government invests in preventive medical care delivered by Tasmanian specialist GPs, to avoid overcrowding in the expensive hospital system,” Dr Seidel said.  

“Committing to improve preventive healthcare services is a ground level approach for a multilevel issue.”

In its pre-election submission to the Tasmanian Government, RACGP Tasmania has proposed four key strategies to encourage investment in primary healthcare:

  1. Increasing funding to smoking and gambling cessation programs including free nicotine replacement to people with low incomes and a transparent commitment to cease acceptance of political donations from the tobacco or gambling industry.
  2. Setting a 72 hour target for all THS hospitals for the delivery or provision of Discharge Summaries to general practice, with a firm commitment to full interoperability with general practice systems by 2020.
  3. Supporting healthy communities by providing free influenza vaccinations to those visiting their GP to be vaccinated and free fruit to public schools.
  4. Implementing general practice internships for postgraduate year 1 and 2 medical practitioners as a state sponsored program to keep our best graduates in Tasmania.

Chair of RACGP Tasmania Dr Jennifer Presser said she looked forward to working with the Tasmanian government to ensure the proposals within the RACGP’s submission are achieved.

“Tasmania has some of the worst indices for chronic disease and aging population in the country, so government support of general practice and primary care in delivering care and moderating the workload in the acute care sector is vital,” Dr Presser said.

“The failure of successive state and federal governments to invest adequately in general practice has resulted in continued increases to the overall cost of healthcare delivery.

“Our patients want health, not necessarily treatment. The focus needs to shift from offering expensive treatments in institutions to effective strategies to maintain health within the community.”

Dr Presser and Dr Seidel called for increased government support of general practice to ensure Tasmanian patients have access to world-class healthcare at the Acute Health Services Inquiry last week.


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