The Elms Family Medical Centre

29/05/2026

The Village Bacchus Marsh will commence construction of an extension to the shopping centre in early June. This was slated to start in early May but has been delayed. This additional building will occupy much of the car parking quadrangle in front of our clinic. As a result of this development, public vehicle access to the front of The Elms will be lost. Exit through to Main Street via the building underpass next to The Elms will also be permanently closed. Disabled parking spots will be re-located to behind the clinic, as well as a temporary ambulance bay.

Pedestrian access will continue to be available from the western car park via the building underpass, or through the UFS Pharmacy from within the main shopping centre. Construction will take around 9 months to complete, and we thank our patients for their tolerance of the inconvenience, noise, and disruption that this will cause. We ask that patients please allow extra time, taking into consideration the expected permanent increased traffic congestion, and loss of car parking spaces

24/05/2026

Diphtheria outbreak.
Australia is currently experiencing an outbreak of diphtheria, a highly contagious disease that had almost been eradicated in Australia. The current outbreak is mainly in remote aboriginal communities in NT, SA,WA and QLD.
Earlier epidemics (around the 1920s) killed many people in Australia (unfortunately there are many graves in the Bacchus Marsh Cemetery of children who succumbed at that time).
This is a bacterial (not viral) infection that is preventable by vaccination. It is also treatable with antibiotics if caught early. Symptoms may be a mild fever, sore throat (that can be severe) and loss of appetite and feeling generally unwell. It can progress rapidly to a membrane over inside of the throat which can result in difficulty swallowing and breathing. It can also cause skin sores that can spread it and it can be carried by people with no symptoms.

Please check your vaccination status (go to My Health Record via MyGov website or the 1800Medicare App on your phone). If you have been vaccinated against tetanus or whooping cough within the last 10 years you are up to date as you will also have been vaccinated against diphtheria (it is a combined vaccine). All children should have been vaccinated against this under the National Immunisation Program.

If you are travelling into remote Australia and you need a booster discuss this with your doctor or our nurses.
See below for more details.

Diphtheria is a serious bacterial infection. It most often spreads through respiratory droplets, or direct contact with the wound. Getting vaccinated is the best protection. We monitor and report on national case numbers and trends. We provide guidelines to minimise the risk.

01/05/2026

Access to The Elms restricted during and after construction in the quadrangle car park.
Please note the Village Shopping Centre is constructing new buildings in what was our previous car park. This is expected to commence around Monday 11th May. Access during construction will be for pedestrians only via the underpass between us and Dan Murphy's. The shopping centre management is shifting our reserved car parks around to the entry road off Main St behind our clinic. We are also discussing ambulance access.

The picture below will be the result AFTER the construction has been completed. There will be limited access for vehicles after construction via the underpass but this will be two way (via a narrow road- so one vehicle only at a time).

27/04/2026

Influenza vaccinations are now available. Please book into a vaccination “clinic” via reception. This will usually be a nurse and a doctor attending, although sometimes a doctor on their own. For those who qualify for vaccines under the National Immunisation Program (children under 5 yrs old, adults over 65 yrs old and those in between with a significant medical problem putting them at increased risk from influenza and indigenous Australians of any age) there is no out of pocket cost.
For anyone else who would like one, we have kept the cost down to $20 again this year.
People may have heard that for the first time in Australia there is an intranasal vaccination, Flumist, for children. This is a spray up each nostril and for some children might it be a good alternative if they are particularly scared of needles. This is a live attenuated vaccine, so is not appropriate for children with immune deficiency conditions. Unfortunately, since this is funded by State governments, Victoria has chosen not to subsidise this. Many other states have funded this. If a parent would like a private prescription for this vaccine please talk to your doctor. The cost varies between pharmacies from $50 to $75.

23/04/2026

The Elms Family Medical Centre will be closed on Anzac Day (Saturday). We will be open as usual on Monday.

01/04/2026

The Elms is closed over the Easter break (Friday, Saturday, Sunday and Monday).
If you need urgent medical care over this period you could use either 1800MEDICARE by telephone or the Victorian Virtual ED for video consultation (search on Internet). Both these are at no cost to patients and both communicate with us (your usual general practice) regarding the outcome and recommendations.

Or there is the Urgent Care Centre at Bacchus Marsh Hospital. They also communicate with us. So we are able to continue caring for you with the knowledge of what has happened.

06/03/2026

This podcast has some excellent tips for people planning a pregnancy. The doctors who talk on this podcast do a lot of pregnancy care as do many of our doctors.
There’s also a follow up podcast regarding the first pregnancy visit (first antenatal visit). These appointments need more time than a standard appointment so please book a long appointment (or a standard one and expect a long follow up visit).

Podcast Episode · The Good GP · 2 February · 20m

05/03/2026

Today Dr Woody Wu and Dr Amit Kumar attended Ararat for an update training day for GP Supervisors of Deakin University Medical Students.
Thank you to all our generous patients who help our Medical Students to learn.

01/03/2026

Happy Autumn. Here’s the link to our quarterly newsletter for updates on what’s happening at The Elms

01/03/2026

Measles outbreak in Victoria and NSW. Please remember to check that you and your children are fully vaccinated with TWO doses of the Measles, Mumps, Rubella vaccine (MMR).
Measles is one of the most contagious airborne illnesses known to man and the vaccine is very, very effective (more effective than influenza and COVID vaccines) and two doses protects most people for life.
In order to protect those who can’t be vaccinated or are immunocompromised, we need community vaccination rates over 95%.
Vaccines are free and nurse vaccination appointments are bulk billed at The Elms.
There is no harm in getting an extra dose if you’re unsure about your vaccination status (you can check on MyGov- My Health Record or check with our nurses or doctors).
Those born before 1966 don’t need vaccination as most people in that era will have had the illness and been lucky enough to have survived. Those born after 1992 should already have received two doses as part of the national childhood immunisation program.

There is an increased risk of measles in Victoria linked to exposure in metropolitan Melbourne, as well as travel overseas and interstate.