Naracoorte doctors say they are hopeful that they will be back working at Naracoorte Hospital by the middle of next week.
Staff from Kincraig Medical Clinic met Country Health SA yesterday to try to resolve a contract dispute that has seen them locked out of the hospital for more than a week, with patients having to be treated by locums.
GP obstetrician Dr Jeff Taylor said further negotiations were now underway and he was confident that an agreement could be reached.
He has acknowledged that it is a difficult situation for Country Health.
“You can’t have every hospital in the state having a totally different contract and we understand the difficult position that they are in, and they’re looking for some consistency,” he said.
“What we were looking for was safety and standards.
“We were able to go through some of those points, they were very open to that discussion.
“Where there was disagreement, we could understand their point of view and so hopefully what we are coming up with will be a win-win, especially in terms of patient care and most importantly, to guarantee the ongoing successful obstetric and surgical procedures at Naracoorte.”
Naracoorte mother Kelly Gale is among those relieved that a resolution is in sight.
Last week, she had to have her baby daughter delivered at Mount Gambier Hospital after receiving a phone call informing her the Naracoorte Hospital was not an option.
Mrs Gale and her husband made the 100-kilometre journey in their own vehicle while she was in labour.
She said the ambulance that was booked to take her was tied up with a more urgent premature delivery, which also needed to go to Mount Gambier.
“You hope for the best but you just don’t know and to be told that you don’t have those facilities right there a couple of minutes down the road that you thought were there was very daunting,” she said.