St Marys community fear losing its only GP, Dr Cyril Latt

Last year, Break O'Day Council Mayor Mick Tucker expressed concerns to the government that St Marys Community Health Centre could lose its only GP, Dr Cyril Latt, who runs a private bulk-billed clinic and also provides ER services to the town all on his own.

The Examiner has also seen a June 2023 letter from the Premier's Office to a resident in St Marys, which discusses the issue of Dr Latt remaining in the community.

The government already supports Dr Latt and has been "engaging with him through the Department of Health to understand what further assistance may be provided," the letter says.

READ MORE: West Tamar Council claims to be 'on the mark' with Beauty Point project

"In establishing a new agreement, the Department has outlined to Dr Latt what services they require from him to support patients at the St Marys District Hospital. In return, the Department is seeking information from Dr Latt about what he requires in terms of remuneration and other support to help him provide these services. I understand these conversations continue in good faith to support Dr Latt to remain in the local community."

"We acknowledge there is a national shortage of general practitioners and a maldistribution that particularly affects remote, rural, and regional areas compared with urban areas," a government spokesperson said.

"Multiple State and Commonwealth incentive programs seek to address this where possible. However, in a private market the movement of general practitioners between private practices is not within the control of either government."

When Barbara Longue, a St Marys resident originally from the United States, arrived in Australia, she had high hopes for our healthcare system.

"I had heard about how great the healthcare system was here," she said, believing that anyone here could easily access free or reasonably priced healthcare.

Residents of St Marys fear that Dr Latt leaving the ER may lead to a shutdown of the General Practice as well, Ms Longue said.

Dr Latt was unable to be reached for comment.

Two weeks ago, fifty residents formed a lobby group when they learned their clinic was at risk. "It's become a grassroots movement," Ms Longue said.

Losing the hospital isn't their only concern as the cracks have been building for some time, Ms Longue said.

St Marys also needs more nurses and paramedics. The town has a volunteer ambulance service which isn't the same thing, Ms Longue said.

READ MORE: Cavaliers to host special round this weekend for pregnancy and infancy loss awareness

Five years ago, Mrs Longue had a head injury and was bleeding from her ear and was eventually driven to the LGH. Had Dr Latt not been there, "it would have been even more disastrous," she said.

"I can tell you of many situations where Dr Latt and his availability 24/7 has saved many lives."

The hospital also doesn't have an X-ray machine, meaning residents need to drive to St Helens or Launceston for acute treatment.

"The city hospitals are overburdened, and we need to be able to take some of that pressure off by using the regional hospitals".

Losing a GP would mean having to go to Bicheno or St Helens, which do not have bulk-billed services.

READ MORE: Northern athletes succeed at All Schools Cross-Country

Those services are already overburdened, Ms Longue said, and people are "resistant" to access them if there's no bulk billing.

She said even getting an appointment with Dr Latt takes around five weeks. His patient load numbers 1,800 people, Ms Longue said, although the town only has around 700 residents.

The remaining number of patients come from Fingal and Mangana, as this is the only available bulk-billed clinic.

The broader issues of adequate GP coverage in Tasmania are coming to a head in St Marys, Ms Longue said.

The long-term perspective is training more nurses and doctors in rural areas and retaining them by paying them competitive salaries that can be found on the mainland, she said.

"I know both political parties in the state say they have big plans, but where's the funding? I mean, are we going to wait eight years for them to graduate and be ready? We need some solutions now."

On Saturday afternoon, members of St Marys Community have invited multiple local council members, and politicians, including Premier Rockliff, for a public discussion on the health service issues affecting residents of St Marys, Ms Longue said.

"I'm hoping that we get national attention on all layers of government, that each of them needs to do their part to fix a very complex problem."

The Department of Health said that it was aware of a planned community meeting on Saturday, and was making arrangements to have a representative attend.

Our journalists work hard to provide local, up-to-date news to the community. This is how you can continue to access our trusted content:

Follow us on Google News: The Examiner