Medical boost for refugees

ASYLUM seekers who are ineligible for Medicare can receive free medical treatment at a new clinic in Dandenong.
The Asylum Seeker General Practice clinic opened this month specifically to provide care for asylum seekers in the southeast.
The service is an initiative of the Greater Dandenong Community Health Service (Southern Health) and the Dandenong District Division of General Practice and is funded by the Department of Human Services and philanthropic sources.
Dandenong District Division of General Practice chief executive Anne Peek said it was estimated between 1000 and 1200 asylum seekers in Melbourne did not have access to Medicare, the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme (PBS) or welfare supports, and a significant proportion of those lived in the southeast.
Ms Peek said two GPs would start off until there was more demand for the service. The project will also fund treatment for patients at Dorevitch Pathology and Chelmer Imaging and PBSlisted medications from local pharmacy Moores the Chemist.
The GP clinic operates fortnightly on Wednesdays between 9am and 1pm and bookings can be made by contacting the Greater Dandenong Community Health Service on 8792 2200.