Colchester Medical Centre

18/11/2025

There is a rumour being circulated that Dr Igor Jakubowicz is retiring. There is NO intention of this at present and we would certainly give our patients, many of whom are on specialised programs, lots of notice if / when this should become imminent. Our doctors enjoy working with our diverse selection of patients.

08/06/2024

Thank you for your vote of confidence as per the survey.

23/05/2024

At last! The unnecessary $4.5m on-road trial of medicinal cannabis users, to be conducted by Swinburne University, will start in September this year. When it is completed the Victorian Government will fooster for a year or two. They may or may not ever release the findings. The final 2022 report on a previous Swinburne study, which showed that Victoria’s roadside screening device is hopeless at detecting the recent use of medicinal cannabis, is still not publicly available. So much for open science in Victoria! Minister Melissa Horne’s paternalistic censorship of the work of Victorian scientists is deplorable.

17/03/2024

Unfortunately, due to doctor shortages and lack of government support, and indeed working against small business in general but Medicare billing in particular, Knoxfield Medical Centre closed on 31st May 2024 after over 37 years of operation. We have consolidated into Colchester Medical Centre with business continuing with face to face and telehealth consultations.

16/12/2023

Colchester Medical Centre will be closed Saturday 30th December 2023 due to the doctor shortage with no-one setting themselves for this day. Knoxfield Medical Centre will also be closed Friday 29th December 2023.

24/08/2023

Stop the sick tax
The government is imposing a new ‘sick tax’ on your general practice that means your GP will need to stop bulk billing you, increase fees or close the practice. With an inability to get doctors, we may not be able to provide the current level of service. We are already closing clinics early on some days when doctors are unavailable.

The RACGP is doing all it can to exempt the earnings of contractor GPs from the payroll tax

30/06/2023

In the state of Washington, where cannabis is legal:
- tax revenue totaled $395 million USD in 2019
- 243,000 full time jobs were supported by the cannabis industry in 2020.4
While in Australia, law enforcement costs related to cannabis came to $2.4 billion in 2015-16.5
The illegal cannabis market also funds organised crime networks and other criminal activity.6
Under a legal model, part of the revenue could go toward supporting public services instead.

Many places overseas are legalising cannabis, including Canada, 21 states in the USA, Thailand, and Uruguay. But what does this mean, and what are the impacts so far?

07/05/2023

We regret these changes but it is an economic necessity due to rising costs and 10 years of frozen Medicare rebates, as well as a shortage of staff. Fees will be increasing on 1st July and Telehealth consultations will be billed as for face-to-face visits (no longer universally bulk-billed). We are still very competitive and sympathetic to our patients. Please visit our website or call for more information.

19/04/2023

06/04/2023

These lifesaving checks are currently the ONLY available Medicare items dedicated specifically to the early detection and prevention of heart disease in Australia, and they now face expiry on the 30 June 2023. Removing the Heart Health Check Medicare item will sadly result in tens of thousands of pr...

06/04/2023

Help save the Medicare Heart Health Check ❤️ https://campaign.heartfoundation.org.au/save-heart-checks
These lifesaving checks are currently the ONLY available Medicare items dedicated specifically to the early detection and prevention of heart disease in Australia, and they now face expiry on the 30 June 2023.
Removing the Heart Health Check Medicare item will sadly result in tens of thousands of preventable heart events occurring and will have a debilitating effect on the health system, all Australians, and their families.
Join me in the fight for Australian hearts and sign the petition TODAY: https://campaign.heartfoundation.org.au/save-heart-checks

These lifesaving checks are currently the ONLY available Medicare items dedicated specifically to the early detection and prevention of heart disease in Australia, and they now face expiry on the 30 June 2023. Removing the Heart Health Check Medicare item will sadly result in tens of thousands of pr...