The population of the Eurobodalla Shire quadruples during summer months – and hospital and GP services, which already struggle in winter to meet demand, can be overwhelmed.

The Bay Post/Moruya Examiner several years ago published the thoughts of GP and Batemans Bay visiting medical officer James Langley regarding this issue.

At the time, in 2012, Dr Langley was speaking out about the lack of doctors at the Batemans Bay Hospital emergency department – but he was already considering the big picture.

Back then, he called for consideration of a regional or base hospital.

Whatever your views on where such a hospital should be situated in the shire – Broulee, Mogo, Moruya or Batemans Bay – the push is now on to get the conversation started with federal and state MPs to make such a hospital a reality.

The Eurobodalla Shire has roughly double the national average of people aged over 65 years and that number is only heading in one direction.

We therefore have elevated numbers of chronic diseases such as diabetes, dementia etc.

We also have the urgent need for better acute care for stroke and heart attack patients.

We also have a growing population of young families who need hospital services.

Both age groups require specialists, including mental health professionals.

A regional hospital would bring the economies of scale that would attract such specialists, rather than having to put up with the piece-meal solution of specialists flying in just once a month.

We all know the system in the shire has many dedicated and skilled nursing and medical staff working in it – and we all know it is overloaded.

We are in the lead-up to federal and state elections – which puts us in the box seat to demand better.

It is time for the shire to make its voice heard.