Dalton Stands Behind Griffith Health Workers

If you have tried to get an appointment with your doctor only to be told that there is a lengthy wait, sometimes weeks, you’re not the only one.

Just like those across the State, Griffith’s doctors and healthcare workers are facing burnout as they shoulder the burden of chronic staffing shortages of such severity that they are impacting patient care.

Those shortages are also affecting the mental health of our caregivers.

It would be safe to say that we are in crisis.

A recent Four Corners documentary, Breaking Point, acknowledged the crisis in Griffith with one nurse stating health workers had nothing left to give.

Dr Theva from Your Health Griffith said his clinic needed an additional four full-time GPs just to manage patient load and in the 15 years he had worked in Griffith he had never seen a shortage of this magnitude.

He also stated that he hadn’t personally had a holiday for three years.

Another Youth Health physician, Dr Marion Reeves’ patients have a nine-week wait and that is with 20 to 30 people on her daily waitlist.

Dr Reeves said lengthy delays in Visa processing were contributing to the GP shortage.

Independent Member for Murray, Helen Dalton said the ongoing health disaster currently experienced across rural NSW had passed crisis point.

“I am willing to work with any level of government, State or Federal, to look at any solutions that will alleviate this issue,” Mrs Dalton said.

“We need a complete overhaul, starting with the appointment of an Independent Health Regulator to help navigate through this crisis.

“My office is constantly contacted by overwhelmed health staff who are at breaking point.

“If nothing changes, we will have no health services left in the bush, it is really getting that bad.”

Mrs Dalton said there had been times in Griffith when medical clinics had only had one doctor on duty, while others had had to close doors because there are no doctors available at all.

She said there was no time for lip service, the government had to address the issue.

“We need to get more general practitioners out into rural areas, and it has to be now,” Mrs Dalton said.

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• Health & Wellbeing