For the next month, any resident who presents at Junee MPS emergency department after 6pm will not be treated by a doctor.

The service has advised patients will be treated by

highly trained and experienced emergency nurses due to the inability to supply a doctor 24 hours a day while the current senior medical officer is on leave.

Due to a nationwide shortage in the medical workforce it

was “frequently not possible for local medical practitioners to obtain locum cover for the hospital”,

GSAHS central sector manager Jill Ludford said.

“In these circumstances, the area health service puts

its plan into place to ensure all patients continue to be

triaged and receive appropriate clinical care.”

A doctor would be available between the hours of 8am

and 6pm with another local general practitioner taking over from the doctor on holidays, she said.

She stressed that if residents had any medical issue at any time they should attend the emergency department, were nurses could assess patients’ symptoms and discuss their requirements with staff at Wagga Base Hospital.

From there doctors in Wagga would be able to work with nurses in assessing patient requirements, she said.

In the event of a serious injury or medical problem, nurses would call for ambulance transfer to Wagga, she said.

Reduced medical cover in the emergency department will take place from tomorrow, through to Wednesday, July 21.

The emergency department will remain open 24 hours.

Junee ambulance service has been notified and residents are reminded to call triple-zero (000) in an emergency.