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The original was posted on /r/newzealand by /u/UnimpressedMonkey_ on 2024-10-15 09:24:16+00:00.
A bit of politics but honestly mostly a rant.
My local GP clinic has increased it’s prices again, second time this year, and a full price for a medical GP consult is now $79. The response from the community is understandably varying degrees and combinations of shocked, horrified, angry, frustrated, hopeless, and disinterested. Some people are understanding of the reasons behind the fee increase. Some people have already started to take it out on the staff. And some out-of-touch people are shrugging it off with comments like “if you can’t afford it, don’t go” and “well that’s what health insurance is for”.
I work in primary health and it breaks my heart to think that more and more people are going to have difficulty accessing healthcare now. I wish all healthcare was free or low-cost at point of care. I wish redirecting people to other facilities if they can’t afford to pay and are safe to be turned away was not an option nor part of the job. We’ve been trying to cut costs for so long, we’re now resorting to things like cutting staff hours (which has significantly increased the workload for the remaining staff) and “use one paper towel instead of two when drying your hands”. We take work home with us because we’re not given admin time, and when we do get a few hours allocated we end up being pulled to the floor anyway because if someone calls in sick it’s cheaper to use someone who is already scheduled to work than to call another person in on their day off. Things that used to be managed by one’s GP practice, like screening recalls and preventative/proactive care, are at risk of becoming delayed or neglected.
What do you do when the funding is so insufficient, and the clinic pleads with the PHO for support, and the PHOs plead with the MOH to make better decisions, and at the end of the day we’re told to “charge the patients more”? I’ve emailed my MP, emailed Shane Reti, and have been encouraging anyone I know who is also unhappy with the current state of things to do the same. In the meantime we try so hard to help people as best as we can but sometimes it feels so futile.