Attracting doctors to town should be the top priority, Gunnedah residents say.
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The consensus from locals comes after Parkes MP Mark Coulton, Tamworth MP Kevin Anderson and HNEH's executive director, rural and regional health services, Susan Heyman announced the reopening of the clinic on Friday at a media event.
Locals are pleased that the Gunnedah Rural Health Centre will come alive again, but many are still concerned that the long-term lack of doctors will continue.
Hunter New England Health (HNEH) will takeover the facility, but this does not guarantee GPs will come to town.
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Ms Heyman said community health services, now located in the Gunnedah hospital, would be moved into the facility "before Christmas", and said HNEH was in talks with all levels of government about the next step.
"It is a tough gig, attracting them ... I think that they should come here because there's a lot of good lifestyle choices living in the country," Ms Heyman said.
"There's a range of strategies that we've successfully used in other parts of the region, and it really depends on the doctors with what incentives work for them.
"Working closely with allied health service; having access to the hospital; being part of a larger community and having support, for example, schools and social networks, within the town, that works because doctors often come with families."
The Gunnedah Rural Health Centre opened in 2013, but closed in 2017 after the business went into administration.
It reopened in the same year under Mackellar Care Services, but the clinic closed again in October 2019 after doctors and locums left.
Gunnedah mayor Jamie Chaffey said the closures had put "a lot of stress on our community".
"Our community really has been struggling since 2018 when we had 12 doctors, and now we're down to four full-time and two part-time doctors," he said.
"The community have expectations that doctors will be provided in this facility."
When the NVI first broke the story on Friday morning, locals were quick to voice their thoughts.
"Moving an existing service won't change lack of doctors. It's still going to be the same as we have [now]," Hannah Moran wrote.
Many Facebook users also hoped that the centre would not face previous dramas, and close after a short period of time.
"They have closed two times now, is it third time's a charm?" Daniel Percy wrote.
"I honestly hope it works for Gunnedah."