The Royal Australian College of General Practitioners has urged all sides of politics to commit to properly funding primary healthcare in the lead up to the federal election.
President of the Royal Australian College of General Practitioners (RACGP), Dr Harry Nespolon, has today called for the next Australian government to invest in the health of Australians so that they can see their GP when they need to, not when they can afford to.
“Australia needs bipartisan support to ensure patient access to a sustainable and viable primary healthcare system. What we can’t have is more uncertainty,” Dr Nespolon said.
“As we come up to the election, there is going to be a lot of discussion on what can be done within healthcare. What we need is bipartisan commitment to the long-term funding of what is the most efficient and effective part of the healthcare system.
“Governments need to understand that when it comes to healthcare, keeping people productive and healthy doesn’t happen within hospitals, it happens, every day, in the consultation rooms of local general practices.
The RACGP has called for action in four key areas to ensure that general practice is affordable and accessible:
- modernise medicine through improved use of technology in healthcare delivery,
- address increasing patient out-of-pocket costs by ensuring patient rebates reflect the true cost of providing care,
- improve supports for mental healthcare delivered by general practitioners, and
- recognise and support the time and skill required to work through complex health issues.
“One thing is certain, if we do not see action in the areas where we are calling for change, general practice will not be able to keep delivering quality preventive, acute and chronic care. This will lead to increased hospital use and costs.
“We need governments to give GPs the support we need to be able to do what we have committed our lives to – keeping our communities healthy.”
The RACGP will continue to advocate for better support for patients and general practices in the lead up to the election.
The RACGP is the peak organisation representing over 40,000 GPs, GP registrars and medical students.