Town contines fight for doc- Supporting the battle to get Tooradin’s first doctor to the town

By Bridget Brady
THE Tooradin community has thrown its weight behind a fight for the town to secure a doctor.
The man responsible for building Tooradin village, Stan Burnett, has joined the business community and local members of parliament who face an uphill battle to get the Federal Government to rethink a District of Workforce Shortage (DWS) classification to allow a super clinict to take shape.
As the News reported last week, Doctor Sunil Kumar was disheartened to learn the government had rejected his application to have Tooradin classified as a DWS area.
Without the classification, overseas trained doctors are unable to obtain a Medicare provider number and therefore provide services to attract Medicare rebates.
The super clinic was due to open in July, and now Dr Kumar says his future in Tooradin is uncertain.
Mr Burnett said a doctor’s clinic would complete the town.
“We need this doctor so badly, I just hope they (government) do the right thing,” Mr Burnett said.
“To complete a community, you must have a doctor. We’ve been fighting that long, we’re not going to give up now.”
Mr Burnett said it was clear to him that Tooradin, with the nearest doctor more than 10 kilometres away, qualified as a DWS area.
“It doesn’t make sense, especially when you’ve got someone who is willing to go,” he said.
“We’ve got the population and everything here. We just need the doctor and we’re complete.”
Flinders MP Greg Hunt has raised the matter with Health Minister Nicola Roxon.
A spokesperson for Ms Roxon said Tooradin presently did not have DWS status.
“However, Mr Kumar has recently submitted to the Department of Health and Ageing an application for a preliminary assessment of district of workforce shortage (PADWS) for the Tooradin Medical Dental Centre, citing special needs for the area and this application is under consideration,” the spokesperson said.