Mullewa’s only GP Dr Nalini Rao retracts resignation 24 hours after quitting over town’s power woes

Mullewa’s sole GP has backflipped on her decision to quit in protest over frequent power cuts, deciding to stay after coming to an arrangement with authorities to improve her working conditions. On Tuesday, Dr Nalini Rao, who has worked in Mullewa for almost seven years, notified her patients and the community that she had given two months notice to the City of Greater Geraldton and planned to vacate the Mullewa Medical Centre and Pharmacy by mid-June. She said ongoing power outages were making it near impossible to run her business and treat her patients. But 24 hours later and amid community backlash over her resignation, Dr Rao confirmed she was no longer leaving after her pleas for action had been heard. Dr Rao said she would be receiving a generator for her practice. This will mean Dr Rao will be a direct customer and notifications of outages will be sent directly to her phone, addressing a previous concern about a lack of communication regarding planned outages. Happy with the outcome, Dr Rao said: “There’s nowhere else I’d rather be. I love the community, I love the work. It’s alleviated a huge amount of stress, which means I can continue to do my job.” Dr Rao continued to say the power issues were part of a much bigger problem. “It has shone a light on the issue, and Western Power are doing their best,” she said. The City was contacted for comment about Dr Rao’s backflip. But on Tuesday, Mayor Shane Van Styn weighed in on social media debate about Dr Rao’s looming departure. He said the City spent about $150,000 a year on supporting Mullewa’s GP, including a car, house, IT, utilities and rent-free practice. “The idea that local government must provide power and health services to rural towns is staggering given it is a core function of State Government,” he said. On Wednesday, Mr Van Styn said the City was happy Dr Rao had rescinded her resignation and they looked forward to continue working with her. “We remain as hopeful as ever that action will be taken by the State to upgrade the power network, and deliver a fit-for-purpose health facility for Mullewa that has been ongoing promised, but not delivered,” he said. A Western Power spokesperson said $4 million worth of upgrades had started to improve Mullewa’s power reliability and make the system more resilient to major weather events. The work will be carried out in two stages between February and August and will see about 340 poles and 25km of conductor replaced in the Mullewa townsite and to the west of town. An emergency generator was installed in 2020, but the spokesperson admitted there had been some “technical issues” on a couple of occasions which had now been resolved. “We’ve been directly engaging with the City of Greater Geraldton regarding this work to keep them informed and ensure consultation and collaboration regarding electricity supply in the region,” the spokesperson said. Because of healthcare shortages in the region, Dr Rao found herself working four days a week as the town GP, was on-call for the hospital 24/7 as an emergency doctor and also worked via telehealth when doctors in neighbouring towns were unavailable. For her, she said, the power problems were the final straw, as when the power went out so did the internet and phones, so they couldn’t inform patients and it threatened the viability of medication like insulin and vaccinations that needed to be refrigerated. “The people deserve a reliable health service and reliable power supply,” Dr Rao said. She added it wasn’t the local government that should have to bear the burden, as it was a Statewide issue. For the residents of Mullewa, the nearest doctor would be a 200km round trip had Dr Rao stopped practising. “If they lose me, they lose a GP, emergency doctor, pharmacy and ambulance volunteer,” she said. Dr Rao said the next issue that needed to be solved by State Government was finding staff for regional healthcare facilities. “They’re desperate, they’re crying out. It’s not a matter of money — the jobs pay well. It’s a matter of safety, security, adequate housing, transport, education and jobs for partners,” she said.. “If you’re not finding enough GPs in metro areas, how are you going to get them to come out bush?” Dr Rao suggested the WA Government follow in the steps of the Tasmanian State Government, and top up GP salaries to incentivise working in the field.