Yass’ Old Linton Medical Practice has gained a mental health expert in experienced GP Dr Vasanth Bajpe.

The new doctor joins the long-standing grandfather & granddaughter duo Dr Ray Burn and Dr Hannah Burn-Petersen at the practice.

Dr Bajpe is bringing a lot of wonderful experience to their clinical group Dr Burn said.

“He’s able to pick up some of our clinical load because it’s a very, very busy time,” she said. “So, we’re really delighted to have him, it’s making a real difference having him here.”

An experienced GP, Dr Bajpe is a fellow with the Royal Australian College of General Practitioners and most importantly brings an expertise in psychotherapy to Yass.

Dr Burn-Petersen said Dr Bajpe’s Masters in Adult Psychotherapy means he’s able to provide expert mental health support to their patient base.

“Particularly during the pandemic, this is really important.”

Patients can now be referred from other practices or internally to
Dr Bajpe for additional mental health support.

“It’s nice to have somebody with that degree of sub-specialization,” she said. “The demand for mental health services is quite high at present.”

“So it’s excellent that we’re able to provide that additional, I guess, puzzle piece in terms of patient care locally.”

“He’s also adept at pathology collection, and other diagnostic bits and pieces,” she said. “So, he’s a very valuable new member of our team.”

Dr Burn-Petersen explained that your mental health is as important as your physical health and it’s just as tangible as any physical problem with your body.

Anxiety, depression, mood disorders, and other mental health conditions are just as significant and just as serious as asthma, blood pressure or a broken arm.

“In fact, they can have the same impact on your health and your life expectancy as these organic medical conditions,” she said.

“It’s just as important to be proactive about the care for your mental health as we would be for a problem that we have in our physical body like say, a cut or burn or a bad cold.”

Additionally, Dr Burn-Petersen said they hope to reopen the Murrumbateman Old Linton Practice in the future but there are no firm commitments at this stage.

“We would love to re-expand back to Murrumbateman at some stage and we really miss all of our Murrumbateman patients,” she said. “But for the moment, we’ve circled the wagons here in Yass.”

It’s a question of how the practice goes over the next six months to a year Dr Burn-Petersen said, before they can make any decisions about an expansion.

The clinic’s website has also just gone live at oldlintonmedicalpractice.com.au. which will soon be linked to Hot Doc.

This will allow patients to book online and particularly Dr Bajpe’s patients who saw him at other practices will be able to find him via the online booking system.

By Brianna O’Rourke