More heart doctors for Hinkler

The Wide Bay region – home to 204,000 people – is currently facing the threat of having only one interventional cardiologist to care for people having heart attacks.

Over 1,700 patients from the Wide Bay last year alone received cardiology care when three interventional cardiologists practised locally and it is expected that wait lists will blow out and patients are likely to be air lifted to Brisbane for urgent heart surgery, putting lives at risk.

At a cost to taxpayers of around $20,000 per patient air lifted, it’s time the Australian Government acted by implementing a basic change to the way exemptions are granted for specialists to be approved to work in regional areas.

The Wide Bay has an ageing population, in a lower income area that has high rates of cardiac disease. All three of these factors combine to prove that we desperately need to attract and retain local cardiologists here in the Wide Bay.

When you have a heart attack time is of the essence. Patients need to be wheeled into an operating theatre not into an ambulance to have them air lifted to a hospital down south just because we can’t get cardiologists in Bundaberg or Hervey Bay due to a technical issue with the way workforce shortages are calculated.

I’m seeking your support to show the Federal Health Minister that this change is needed immediately to ensure our community has the best possible health outcomes when it comes to heart health.