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GPs ‘shut out’ of disaster planning response
Grants must be given to Queensland clinics at high risk of natural disaster, allowing GPs to ‘carry communities’, says the RACGP.
Queensland is the most natural disaster-prone state or territory in Australia.
As climate-driven disasters occur more often and more intensely, the RACGP is calling on the Queensland Government to bolster support for the state’s GPs to ensure safe and coordinated healthcare during and after catastrophic events.
The RACGP has submitted a pre-budget proposal to the Queensland Government that seeks to ensure the state’s GPs are appropriately involved, prepared and remunerated before, during and after disasters.
Queensland is the nation’s most disaster-impacted jurisdiction and is currently facing a fresh threat, with Cyclone Narelle predicted to smash the state’s far-north coast as a potential category 5 event in the coming days.
Yet RACGP Queensland Deputy Chair Dr Aileen Traves says the state’s GPs are ‘shut out’ of the planning process for disaster preparation, response and recovery.
She said members also report being turned away from evacuation centres, or being asked to work informally in environments with poor coordination, unclear direction, and no reimbursement.
‘GPs are often the first medical professionals people turn to, and they carry communities through the long recovery that follows a disaster,’ Dr Traves said.
‘GPs provide specialised clinical care, including chronic disease management, mental health support, wound care, and medication management, yet they have no consistent funding or recognised role in evacuation centres or response planning.
‘We are shut out of planning structures, unsupported in evacuation centres, and left to volunteer time without reimbursement. This must change.’
The RACGP is calling for up to $3.8 million from the Queensland Government to fund the GP Disaster Preparedness Program with:
- grants of up to $40,000 for up to 95 high-risk Queensland GP practices
- purchase of essential equipment, supplies and preparedness measures.
It also seeks specialist GP representation on all Queensland Local Disaster Management Committees, to embed frontline primary care expertise in planning, coordination and response, at a cost of $108,880 per year.
A 2023 Climate Council report reveals
more than 80% of Australians had experienced climate-related disaster in the previous five years, and around half of those people reported mental health issues as a result.
The Climate Council also found Queensland
suffers more economic damage from extreme weather events than any other state or territory, costing the state about $30 billion since 1970.
Dr Traves said the RACGP’s proposal would ensure Queensland communities are supported by prepared, well equipped general practices and integrated GP leadership during disasters, which will in turn improve health outcomes and reduce the strain on hospitals and emergency services.
‘A coordinated primary care response protects lives, protects communities and strengthens recovery,’ she said.
‘Our ask is simple, affordable, and effective, and it will ensure GPs are empowered to deliver the essential care Australians rely on when disaster strikes.’
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