The South Taranaki town without a permanent doctorBrittany Baker/STUFF The people of Pātea love their little South Taranaki town. A small South Taranaki town is still without a permanent doctor - and its latest locum is leaving. Pātea is experiencing what many rural places already know - it's hard to attract permanent medical staff to small towns. The approach aims to attract doctors with rural interests and return doctors from rural communities to rural areas. Pātea clinic's practice manager Christine Steiner understands finding a permanent doctor is difficult for small towns but patients in Pātea have had to bounce from doctor to doctor for years.

Source: Stuff December 21, 2017 01:15 UTC