The Caringbah Urgent Care Service clinic in President Avenue, opposite McDonald's. Picture by Murray Trembath

Caringbah Urgent Care Clinic operated with reduced hours on 14 occasions, and was closed completely on three days, in the eight months to February this year.

Subscribe now for unlimited access.

or signup to continue reading

The federal government-funded, Medicare only service opened in President Avenue opposite McDonald's in early 2024.

The clinic is supposed to be open 365 days a year from 8am to 8pm, relieving pressure on Sutherland Hospital's Emergency Department.

Health Minister Ryan Park provided operational details in response to a question on notice in State Parliament from Cronulla MP Mark Speakman.

Mr Speakman told parliament one constituent, Kim, had written to him saying, 'It has come to my attention that these disruptions are frequently occurring because the doctor scheduled to work at Caringbah is being redirected to staff other urgent care centres, most notably the newly established centre at Marrickville".

"While I understand the challenges involved in staffing healthcare facilities, this practice is having a significant and ongoing impact on residents of Sutherland Shire," he said.

"The repeated diversion of medical staff away from Caringbah creates an inequitable outcome for the Sutherland Shire community."

Mr Speakman said another constituent, Emma, had written, "In the past two weeks, I have been directed by HealthDirect twice to the Urgent Care Clinic Caringbah during opening hours (8am to 8pm) only to find it closed".

"In one instance, my four-year-old's hand was badly burned, on the other occasion my hand was cut," she said.

"While my son and I were able to make alternate plans, I worry about vulnerable and elderly people being directed or visiting the clinic to find it closed - and then having a stroke / heart attack / whatever else because they weren't seen in time.

"Then last night, once again HealthDirect directed me there as the clinic was listed as 'open' in their system. When I arrived the medical centre staff said the clinic wasn't open."

Mr Speakman said the closures, coupled with the latest elective surgery and emergency department data, showed Sutherland Shire was receiving "inequitable" health services compared with neighbouring St George.

The Caringbah Urgent Care Service clinic in President Avenue, opposite McDonald's. Picture by Murray Trembath

He called on the government to "to stop treating the Sutherland Hospital and the Caringbah Urgent Care Service as poor cousins, and to make sure that the facilities and their dedicated staff have the resources to provide the timely health care that shire residents deserve".

Mr Speakman said Bureau of Health Information data for the December 2025 quarter showed 24 per cent of elective surgeries did not start on time, an increase of nine per cent in 12 months.

"But, over Kogarah way, patients have a much better chance that their surgery will be done on time, with only 11 per cent of patients not having their surgery start on time," he said.

"Sutherland's peer hospitals across the State are better off, with 18 per cent of surgeries not starting on time.

"In the Sutherland Hospital emergency department, 47 per cent of patients did not start their treatment on time, compared with 38 per cent in the State peer group and 39 per cent at St George Hospital."

A spokesman for Mr Park said ED wait times and surgery wait lists at Sutherland Hospital had improved under the Minns Labor Government.

"The latest BHI data shows the percentage of patients transferred from paramedics to ED staff within 30 minutes is now over 85 per cent, compared to 72 per cent in the same quarter in 2022.

"The number of patients waiting longer than clinically recommended for surgery is 0, compared to 117 patients in the same quarter in 2022.

"Patients are also receiving surgery sooner, with urgent elective surgery patients waiting an average of 17 days (down from 20 days in 2022) and semi-urgent surgery patients waiting an average of 48 days, compared to 69 days in the same quarter in 2022."

The spokesman said, "If it were up to Mark Speakman there would be 104 fewer nurses in South Eastern Sydney Local Health District, 33 fewer nurses in the Sutherland Hospital emergency department, and he would have health workers paid less", he said.

"We won't be lectured by Mark Speakman who would cut health workers and cut their pay.

"The Minns Labor Government saved the 104 nurses Mr Speakman planned to cut at South Eastern Sydney Local Health District and introduced Safe Staffing ratios which has seen 33 additional nurses at Sutherland Hospital emergency department."

Mr Speakman replied, "Labor can duck and weave, but the fact remains that Sutherland Hospital is going backwards under them".

"On nurse numbers, they are cherry-picking and misrepresenting one category of nurses - those employed on temporary contracts to deal with the backlog caused by cancelled elective surgeries during COVID.

"Overall, however, there would have more, not fewer, nurses at Sutherland Hospital than under Labor had the Liberals been re-elected.

"In our last (2022-23) Budget, we had funded 10,000 extra health workers across NSW over the next four years. Instead, Labor cut the health operating budget after inflation for two years in a row.

"On hospital performance, Ryan Park is ignoring the impact of COVID. The Liberals injected an extra $408 million in the 2022-23 Budget to slash the COVID backlog and it worked, continuing into Labor's first year. Labor, however, did not renew that funding."