The median weekly household income in Mount Eliza is more than $500 greater than in Pearcedale, according to the latest census data. This is despite Pearcedale having a mixed population that includes significantly disadvantaged people, according to Rastegar. Yet the neighbouring area of Mount Eliza, which is ranked by the Australian Bureau of Statistics as having the highest level of advantage in the Mornington Peninsula, qualified for DPA status. Sign up for Guardian Australia’s free morning and afternoon email newsletters for your daily news roundup “Zoning us as metropolitan does not make any sense,” Rastegar said. But the town of Pearcedale itself is considered a coastal rural locality, surrounded by farms and horse racing stables. As a result, they are missing out on DPA status and struggling to attract the international doctors they once relied on to fill workforce gaps.ĭr Farza Rastegar is the owner of the only GP clinic in Pearcedale, a town an hour and a half south-east of Melbourne in the City of Casey local government area, which is classified as metropolitan. DPA classification is updated annually.īut rural towns on the city and regional fringes say their status is being boosted by their non-rural neighbours in the same geographic area that attract more GPs. The DPA system, which is being reviewed, identifies geographic areas with a shortage of GPs by examining the remoteness of an area, the socioeconomic status of its patients, and the number of Medicare billings. Doctors trained overseas are crucial to easing GP shortages across the country because for their first 10 years in Australia they must work in areas of need, known as a distribution priority area, to access Medicare benefits.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |