The Saratoga Medical Centre has received $25,000 from the Strengthening Medicare – General Practice Grants Program to update its IT systems.

The Strengthening Medicare – General Practice Grants Program is investing $220 million in grant funding, over two years, to support general practices across Australia.

In Robertson, over $1 million in general practice grants have been allocated.

Federal Member for Robertson, Dr Gordon Reid MP, welcomes the Federal Labor Government’s investment into primary care.

“Primary care is essential healthcare, and the more funding we can prioritise into strengthening the system, it will ensure better health outcomes”, Dr Reid said.

“It will also help reduce the pressure on our hospital emergency departments”.

“The grant funding provided to Saratoga Medical Centre will improve patient access and ensure upgrades to critical IT systems that are essential for general practices to function successfully”.

“The Federal Labor Government is committed to boosting primary care on the Central Coast and we will continue to address the issues affecting primary care in the region”, Dr Reid said.

Saratoga Medical Centre General Manager, Claudine Restom, says the grant funding has been a boost for the general practice.

“The grant has been beneficial in helping us update our IT system, so we can stay on the cutting edge of technology”, Ms Restom said.

“Updating all our IT systems has given us an additional layer of cyber security”.

“This grant has helped medical centres across the board to implement quality improvement changes and system updates that would have otherwise taken a long time to execute due to financial constraints”, Ms Restom said.

For more information about the Federal Labor Government’s Strengthening Medicare – General Practice Grants Program, visit: https://www.health.gov.au/sites/default/files/2023-05/strengthening-medicare-general-practice-grants-program.pdf

ENDS