A medical clinic in Pāpāmoa, which provides services to 6,000 patients, is downsizing due to a critical shortage of GPs and insufficient government funding, according to one of the clinic’s owners.
The Pāpāmoa Pines Medical Centre located on Domain Road will cease operations in mid-April, after serving the rapidly growing community for approximately 15 years. Its patients will be transferred to a sister facility in Pāpāmoa East, which currently caters to around 4,000 individuals.
The Pāpāmoa Pines Medical Group told patients earlier this week that the financial support from the government for general practices made operating.
A statement on the clinic’s website read:
‘As you are aware we have been running two large scale Medical Centres for some time, at Domain Road and more recently at The Boulevard in Papamoa East.
‘You will also be aware that the current financial climate for the government funding of General Practice in NZ is in a very perilous state and this, combined with the prevailing economic conditions and the lack of doctors available to work as GPs both nationally and internationally, has had a huge impact on our ability to viably run two fully staffed Medical Centres.
‘After considerable reflection and exhaustive exploration of ways to recruit more GPs to justify continuing to operating both Medical Centres, we have made the decision to embark on a downsizing of our business to ensure our sustainability and our viability long term.
‘As we embark on this process, we have decided to sell our Domain Road Medical Centre and retrench to our newer facility at 191 The Boulevard, Golden Sands, Papamoa from mid April 2024.’
Health NZ has acknowledged the strain on the GP workforce and was investigating ways to ‘better support’ general practices through both international recruitment efforts and domestic training programmes.
Pāpāmoa Pines Medical Centre’s co-owner, Pamela Sheahan told legacy media outlet NZ Herald that the decision to close was tough, especially after losing several GPs in the past year. The clinic tried to fill these vacancies but now operates with eight GPs. She called for a major overhaul of the government’s capitation funding model, which she claims does not adequately compensate for the actual number of patient visits.
‘We’re paid for four visits per year per patient. If you get children and older people, they come to the GP far more than four times … sometimes up to 20 times a year,’ she told the NZ Herald.
Sheahan said the clinic’s revenue, aside from government funding, primarily comes from patient charges, which are also regulated by the government. She pointed out the difficulties in managing two clinics with a reduced number of GPs, declaring it ‘unsustainable’. The closure of the Domain Rd location, which has been in operation since 2009, is anticipated to mainly affect patients in terms of increased travel time to the newer Boulevard clinic.
Despite the closure, patient feedback has been largely supportive. Dr. Davitt Sheahan, co-owner and Pamela’s husband, did not specify if the downsizing would result in job losses. Meanwhile, Martin Hefford of Te Whatu Ora acknowledged the limitations of the current funding system and detailed steps being taken to address the GP shortage and funding issues, including an increase in funding for primary and community health services and adjustments to better support practices serving Māori and Pacific populations.
The Palms Medical Centre and City Doctors in Palmy North where I used to live a couple of years ago are probably next, along with practices that are similar elsewhere in the country. We saw strange business practices and procedures being implemented (ie ‘pay before the appointment’, not after…), a turn-over of GP’s (who have probably scooted-off to Oz…), and services scaled to serve more incoming immigrants.
& yet, other medical practices are not taking new patients…
Could it be that the Covid vaccine disaster has over-loaded the system?
It takes weeks to see a GP in the Mid-Coast DHB area, and it’s not just that DHB that has massive delays. Going to ‘triage’ or ‘urgent care’ only renders minimal support, often ending with “you’ll need to make an appointment with your regular GP.” which ends-up being weeks out.
Too bad if you have meningitis, septicemia, or a fast-moving undetected cancer…
The solution is to bring in more GP’s / MD’s from elsewhere, and activate the NZDF to supply their Medical Corps to hospitals for minor and moderate surgeries, thus relieving the wait list.
And…no more Covid Ops either!
Thank you Cindy and Grant Robertson for wrecking NZ economy. TRAITORS!
I am aware of a number of Doctors who have left General Practice to move to Natural Therapy type environments. Imagine a GP having to keep a straight face and a hand on heart in needing to deliver a convincing message to their patient who has very recently received a myriad of abnormal Immunological tests post vaccination, that the vaccines were ‘safe ‘but their newly diagnosed complex conditions /disorders now renders them effectively ‘toast’. Is the loss of GP’s a consequence of poor directives and the need to stick to the narrative out of fear? This would make for an interesting study.
it is a slightly misleading story. Compared to other cities, there are quite a few doctors in Papamoa. And, these people have just opened a large flash building on the Boulevard.
My neighbour went to a rheumatology appointment in Welly just after lockdown #2
The specialist spent 5 minutes addressing the symptoms and treatment of arthritis, and the remaining 15 minutes on insisting and later arrogantly DEMANDING that she take the Covid vaccines.
The modus is plainly obvious: ‘Fit, & Proper, not overweight, and employed (to generate tax revenue for the state) is desired, and those not meeting the criteria are targeted for a vigorous vaccination campaign in the hope that they will die soon, and not be a burden to the health system.
There is also a blacklist we suspect, and a list of ‘do not help’ secondary to the main ACC File.
Look at the euthanasia policies that Canada has…including the snuffing of disabled patients.
The specialist later admitted that he had stock in Pfizer…after the woman’s hubby called the specialist and cancelled all further appointments.
Treatment is now ongoing for the woman’s condition, and they fly to Oz every 6 months for auto-immune management appointments, with an Australian specialist who is also licensed to practice in NZ.