Are you one of the many people in the Grampians and Wimmera who rely on medical care from South Australia?
It can often be quicker to travel across the border than to get to the nearest treatment provider in Victoria.
So the closure of the South Australian border due to the COVID-19 outbreak has had a significant impact on many people.
The Nhill resident is awaiting urgent hip replacement, but has had the surgery delayed twice since it was scheduled in March.
His condition, meanwhile, has seriously deteriorated.
That story resembles Emma Bayly's, whose son Nate was born in a Mount Gambier hospital on March 3 - two-and-a-half weeks early.
Because of the border closures her appointments at the Mt Gambier hospital have been cancelled, with new slots only possible when the border re-opens.
Ms Bayly has family in Mount Gambier but works in the kitchen at Kaniva Hospital. She moved to Lillimur several years ago, and lives with partner Daniel, a mechanic.
She said there were no specialists in the area that could identify complications following childbirth. She has since made appointments with a Ballarat paediatrician, a journey that is twice as long as getting to Mt Gambier.
Do you have a story about how the border closures have affected you? Please email me on juanita.greville@austcommunitymedia.com.au
Juanita Greville
Acting Editor
