Fears of GP exodus as practices close in battler suburbs
South-west Sydney has lost 19 practices in the past year alone.
GP practices are disappearing in Sydney’s outer suburbs as GPs retire or leave for mixed-billing practices in more affluent communities.
The CEO of South Western Sydney PHN says he’s alarmed by the closure of 19 local practices in the past year.
While a few have merged with larger practices, most have shut because the GPs can no longer sustain a bulk-billing practice, or they have retired, Dr Keith McDonald (PhD) tells AusDoc.
“Some GPs are pulling the pin and, for their own professional viability, are saying: ‘I have got to go somewhere where there is mixed billing.'”
