'There needs to be something': Stopgap GPs needed to avoid crisis

Dr Fiona Van Leeuwen, chair of the Hunter General Practitioners Association, said 'there needs to be something' for people without a regular GP. Picture by Jonathan Carroll

People who don't have a regular GP need an "interim measure" to ensure they can see a doctor in the daytime when needed, Dr Fiona Van Leeuwen says.

Dr Van Leeuwen, chair of the Hunter General Practitioners Association, said a shortfall of GPs had coincided with a rise in chronic illness and "Medicare not being fit for purpose".