NSW Urgent Care Services (UCS) are a NSW Government initiative designed to reduce pressure on hospital emergency departments by providing timely assessment and treatment for patients with urgent but non-life-threatening conditions. They operate as GP-led or GP-style clinics with extended hours and the capability to perform basic investigations.
Patients attending UCS present with conditions such as minor fractures, lacerations, infections, respiratory illnesses, and other presentations that do not require emergency resuscitation or specialist hospital resources — but that often end up in EDs because patients have no other timely access to care.
The Division's representative Dr Tarun Chauhan sits on the regional UCS committee and advocates for models of urgent care that complement — rather than compete with — general practice, and that channel patients back to their regular GP for ongoing management.
The Division's position is that urgent care services should function as an extension of, not a replacement for, general practice. Patients treated at a UCS should receive a summary and be redirected to their regular GP for follow-up and ongoing care management.
Urgent care is a rapidly evolving area of policy, with significant implications for the role of general practice in the health system.
Patients seen at urgent care services should be connected back to their regular GP. Fragmentation of care leads to poorer health outcomes, especially for patients with chronic conditions or complex needs.
Poorly designed urgent care models risk drawing GPs away from continuity-based general practice. The Division advocates for UCS models that support rather than undermine the general practice workforce.
GPs should receive timely, quality summaries when their patients attend a UCS — just as they should after any hospital visit. This requires robust information sharing systems between UCS and practices.
UCS should have clearly defined scopes of practice that are transparent to patients and GPs, and that don't overlap with ongoing chronic disease management, mental health care, or preventive health — which remain the domain of general practice.
If a patient presents to you with an urgent but non-life-threatening condition and you're unable to see them immediately, or if they ask about their options outside GP hours, NSW Urgent Care Services are an appropriate alternative to the emergency department for suitable presentations.
You can direct patients to search for their nearest NSW Urgent Care Service online, or use HealthPathways for guidance on appropriate urgent referrals within the local health system.
If you have feedback or concerns about how urgent care services are operating in the St George region, please share them with our representative Dr Tarun Chauhan.