Mullewa’s only GP, Dr Nalini Rao, terminates contract, gives 60-day notice over ‘constant power delays’

Mullewa’s sole GP has quit in frustration over “constant power cuts” and accused the City of Greater Geraldton of ignoring her pleas for help.

Dr Nalini Rao has been Mullewa’s only GP for almost seven years but also works in the emergency department and devotes some time as an ambulance officer.

In a Facebook post to the Mullewa Medical Centre and Pharmacy page on Tuesday morning, Dr Rao wrote: “Apologies to patients about what I’m about to say. I’m f...... over this constant power cuts.

“I’ve been in Mullewa for nearly seven years. It’s had its challenges but many rewards. The ongoing power issues will probably break the camel’s back soon.

“I, like others in this small town have to run a business, pay bills and staff and make a living. I will be asking the city for connections to a back-up generator which I believe they have at the office next door. My previous requests have been in vain. I’m done being resilient.”

Dr Rao said with a “sad heart” she had tendered her 60-day notice of contract termination with the City of Greater Geraldton, meaning she will finish by June 4.

The ongoing power interruptions are causing her to lose money and threatens the viability of medication, which needs to be refrigerated.

She has 800 patients on her books and during the popular wildflower season, Dr Rao’s patient load triples.

The centre and pharmacy employs four other part-time staff.

Power outages had been an ongoing issue during her entire time in Mullewa, Dr Rao told the Geraldton Guardian on Tuesday, but said it had worsened over the Christmas period when they experienced 10 outages that lasted about 10 hours each.

Dr Rao said the city had ignored her requests for a back-up generators but installed one in the council office next to her.

“They say they’ll do something but it’s just words, we need action, not words,” she said.

“The State Government needs to step in.

“Without power, we have no internet, without internet we have no phone and without phones we can’t do anything.

“Without power or a generator we couldn’t refrigerate our insulin or our vaccines; I nearly lost my licence.”

Dr Rao said some of the outages were planned, but the council had not alerted her to those.

The centre, which offers bulk-billing because Dr Rao does not pay rent on the building, has a back-up power supply that lasts eight hours.

Dr Rao plans to move to Perth with her 15-year-old who boards in Geraldton.

Mayor Shane Van Styn said the council shared Dr Rao’s frustrations, but were unaware of any requests from Dr Rao for a back-up generator.

“We have just been made aware of Dr Rao’s termination of contract and give our best wishes for the future,” he said.

“We understand Dr Rao’s frustrations as they are ours too as well as the broader community’s. We have been working closely with Western Power to increase reliability and mitigate disruption as much as possible in the Mullewa area and understand that many in the Mid West are also having similar struggles.

“Unfortunately there is only so much we can do in this space.

“We acknowledge the importance of a local doctor for the Mullewa community and in light of this unexpected news will need to consider the options to provide that support going forward.”

Mr Van Styn said the city, like many regional governments, was troubled that ratepayers were expected to fund and deliver health services, which were the primary responsibility of the State Government, without any funding support from the State health budget.

He said the city had been allocating “scarce funds” to install generators on various facilities as the budget allowed.

“We have installed a generator at the Doc Docherty Pool as it is critical during summer when the power goes out and the heat is extreme,” he said. “In addition to this, we have installed a generator at the Mullewa District Office as the main administration hub in town.

“When Western Power permanently based a very large generator in Mullewa, the city looked to build resilience into some of its facilities outside of Mullewa as the large Western Power generator should have provided the required back-up service.”

Locals commented on Facebook that a back-up generator should be a small price to pay in order to keep someone so vital to the town like Dr Rao.

A Western Power spokesperson said an emergency response generator was installed in 2020 to improve power reliability in the Mullewa townsite.

It has also started a $4 million package of upgrades in Mullewa on top of $16m allocated to the Mid West for bushfire mitigation.

“There have been some technical issues which resulted in the generator not working on a couple of occasions, but these issues have now been resolved,” the spokesperson said.

Western Power also plans to install an extra ring main unit in Deepdale later this year which will improve reliability for customers on the Mullewa feeder line.

“We understand the inconvenience of planned outages, but this work is needed for network renewal and maintenance and to support improved reliability,” the spokesperson said.

“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.”