CASTERTON’S Riverview Family Health and Western District Health Service are partnering to provide GP services to the Coleraine and district community.

The Riverview clinic, which has operated in Casterton for the past five years and since the closure of Coleraine Casterton Medical, has extended to visiting GP services at Casterton Memorial Hospital, will now also provide clinical GP services, five days per week, at Coleraine.

Riverview practice owners, Linda Thompson and her Mount Gambier-based business partner, Dr Richard Try said they were delighted to be able to provide GP services to Linda’s home town.

“I live in Coleraine with my husband, Jason Harris and our daughter, Tayler, who has also recently bought her own home here,” Ms Thompson said.

“It’s a great little community, with a terrific hospital and having a GP service in town is absolutely essential.

“WDHS chief executive, Rohan Fitzgerald and Dr Dale Ford worked really closely with us to establish a great working relationship and opportunity for recruitment of a new GP to Coleraine.

“We’re pleased to be working with WDHS, to ensure the community continues to have access to this necessary health service.”

With the support of the Casterton clinic and Dr Try’s Mount Gambier practice, Dr Cigi Kaya is now providing the five-day per week GP clinic service from now until late March, when a permanent GP will be appointed and with two others to follow, expected in April, Ms Thompson said district residents could be assured of a quality and consistent service.

Dr Kaya is living in Hamilton with her dog, Benek, but is keen to move into, if not closer to Coleraine and Riverview staff are investigating local housing opportunities.

Dr Kaya said she was excited about her move to regional Victoria in her first role as a visiting GP and looked forward to meeting the community.

“The opportunity presented itself quite out of the blue and a friend of mine is moving to Adelaide, so I thought I could go and visit her from here - it’s on the way! - and I get to see some of rural Victoria,” Dr Kaya said.

“Every town has its own character and community, it’s very endearing to see and I find that the more I see of regional and rural areas, the more overwhelming I find cities to be.

“I’ve just come from four months in (Coffs Harbour), I was in Sydney for a week, then this opportunity came up and I thought, ‘Sydney’s a bit too much right now’, so here I am.”

And while her arrival in Hamilton late Sunday night had not afforded a great opportunity to go exploring, she said she already felt welcome and at home.

“It was only yesterday afternoon I got to have a look around, I started with Hamilton, went for a walk around the lake, it was beautiful, the town is lovely and everyone’s just so friendly … it’s such a nice area.”

WDHS chief executive, Rohan Fitzgerald said his organisation had been in negotiations with a number of interested parties to provide GP services in Coleraine, since learning of the closure of the Casterton Coleraine Medical Centre – the town’s only medical clinic – in December.

“Since we received notification of Dr Brian Coulson’s retirement and the subsequent practice closure, we’ve been working behind the scenes to ensure the Coleraine community continues to have access to quality GP care - close to home,” Mr Fitzgerald said.

 WDHS has also established a community nurse program at Coleraine District Health Service, where a registered nurse is providing care and support similar to the role of the previous community practice nurse, including wound care and pathology.

The nurse is currently working at the Thomas Hodgetts Community Centre 12pm to 3pm every Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday; appointments can be made by phoning (03) 5553 2011.

Mr Fitzgerald said he was pleased to have found a solution so quickly and thanked the community for their patience and support.

“We understand how challenging it has been for Coleraine locals who have had to travel to other towns for medical assistance and advice in recent weeks,” he said.

“The short notice period around the closure of the community medical centre and the timing over the Christmas and New Year period made the prospect of finding a GP difficult.

“Critical GP shortages across the State also proved a major hurdle, but we’ve remained solutions focussed and this has led to a positive outcome for the Coleraine community.

“Thank you to everyone who has worked with us to deliver these vital new services and to the people of Coleraine and surrounds for their patience during this time.”