A major tertiary hospital’s decision to restrict specialist outpatient referrals to local patients will delay care and create additional work for GPs, doctors are warning. 

The Royal Melbourne Hospital announced the policy earlier this month, apparently following a 21% increase in the number of people referred for outpatient care in the last financial year, with more than half of all referrals coming from outside its three local areas.

While the public debate over specialist access has focused almost solely on specialist fees, the move has again raised concerns about what Dr Mike Freelander has described as the “almost complete collapse” of the public outpatient system.

The paediatrician turned MP is currently chairing an investigation by the Standing Committee on Health, Aged Care and Disability into specialist care access and affordability and he has already flagged that it will examine the demands on under-resourced outpatient clinics.