Gisborne letters on doctors in rural communities, speed limits, climate action

It seems that the ideal way to get medical staff to stay long-term in the regions is to actively encourage and support the people who live there to go into medical training, says Zena Simpson.

OPINION

Supporting people from provinces into medicine

When I was reading the article with Dr Fergus Aitcheson (”GP sector in grave situation due to long-term underfunding”, July 29), I was reminded of research (Murray, 2023) done in Australia about doctors and rural communities.

Rural communities in Australia, similarly to New Zealand, have an ongoing shortage of doctors. The Government and private institutions have been trying a lot of methods to fix this, including offering incentives and high salaries in some cases. However, according to research, even if these opportunities are attractive for some doctors at the beginning, only an insignificant number of them stay in rural areas after a few years.

The evidence shows that the only group that stays in non-metropolitan areas (and who love working in rural towns) are people who have a rural background. I think this might apply to New Zealand as well.

But instead of trying to get more students from non-metropolitan areas to study medicine, from what I see, New Zealand has a desire to try to solve the problem through immigration. As an immigrant myself, I always believed that since I am living in someone else’s home/land, I should not come empty-handed. And most immigrants do that by contributing any way they can to the communities they live in.

However, when it comes to healthcare, data shows that most immigrant doctors have a tendency to move to the metropolitan areas as well.

Australia has about 3000 overseas-trained doctors entering the sector annually, but very few stay in the regional areas.

Gisborne seems to be lucky in the sense that it had a loyal group of doctors with the vision to create a well-functioning, up-to-date (and underappreciated) medical centre that serves the community.

But it seems that the ideal way to get medical staff to stay long-term in the regions is to actively encourage and support the people who live there to go into medical training.

In case there are people who don’t know, here is the link to help get the rural or semi-rural people into medicine in New Zealand: https://uoa.custhelp.com/app/answers/detail/a_id/1808/~/regional-rural-admission-scheme-eligibility

Zena Simpson

Higher speeds already

The Government is keen to increase speed limits but that is already happening here. Nelson Rd from Ruth St to Lytton Rd roundabout is 50km/h, two schools are road-side and another two on side roads with notices advising this. Few vehicles are doing 50km/h and a great number are doing 60km/h-plus.

Potae Ave from Lytton West shops to Joanne St - a residential area with a school close by - has the same issue.

It is time for a speed camera to bring speeds back down.

Colin Sowerby

All have to do our bit

Re: “Our priority adaptation, land use change” - August 3 letter.

Sure Roger, with your logic I will stop paying tax to IRD, since my contribution is so tiny. Aotearoa New Zealand didn’t shirk its moral responsibility to fight fascism in Europe, even though we had a very modest military compared to the other Allied nations.

We all have to do our bit Roger, and switching off fossil fuels will make us a lot richer as a nation (import substitution: home grown electricity for imported oil and diesel - 7 billion litres per year or about $18 billion retail) and healthier from cleaner air.

Gerard Bellam

A matter of priorities

There is no need to make flippant remarks about not paying taxes - I never said we should not “do our bit”. My point is that tackling issues is a matter of priorities.

Staying afloat is the priority when one faces drowning - not booking in for swimming lessons in the future.

I think ”switching off fossil fuels” may be a lot more difficult and problematical than you apparently believe. I am doing “my bit” - I try to consume as little as possible in life; I now ride a scooter and my car has been off the road for over half a year.

Roger Handford