This year Hunter Primary Care (HPC) celebrates its 30th birthday, and what a ride it has been.

From humble beginnings in late 1992 as the Hunter Urban Division of General Practice (HUDGP), fast forward to 2023 where we are now the region's largest provider of health and wellbeing services ranging from Aboriginal & Torres Strait Islander health, mental health, NDIS and chronic disease, after-hours and primary care.

There have been so many milestones over the last three decades, including:

  • 1992 HUDGP forms as the first funded Division in Australia.
  • 1998 HUDGP commences providing IT support services for local GP clinics.
  • 1999 The GP Access After Hours trial commences and the first clinic opens in Maitland.
  • 2003 GP Access After Hours expands across the Hunter opening four additional clinics.
  • 2005 HUDGP Psychology Services launch.
  • 2008 HUDGP rebrands to GP Access following the success of the GP Access After Hours service.
  • 2010 GP Access introduces Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Outreach Worker services, Care Coordination & Supplementary Services (CCSS) and 715 Indigenous Health Checks as part of the Closing the Gap in Indigenous Health program.
  • 2011 GP Access becomes one of the first of 19 Medicare Locals to be established across the country, Hunter Medicare Local (Hunter ML) as part of the Commonwealth Government’s eHealth reforms.
  • 2013 Hunter ML commences a commitment towards a reconciled Australia with a Reflect Reconciliation Action Plan endorsed by Reconciliation Australia.
  • 2015 Commonwealth funding for Hunter ML ceases and Hunter Primary Care begins trading under its own name.
  • 2016 The Way Back Support Service commences in collaboration with Beyond Blue.
  • 2017 Yudhilidin, Drug & Alcohol Counselling services and Primary Health Care Nurse services launch.
  • 2017 ChooseABILITY program launches, which is now known as NDIS Support Coordination services.
  • 2017 Reconciliation Australia endorses HPC’s progression to an Innovate Reconciliation Action Plan.
  • 2018 New brand with the ‘We Listen. Care. Connect’ tagline is introduced.
  • 2019 Hunter Psychosocial Support Service (now Commonwealth Psychosocial Support) is introduced.
  • 2019 HPC secures the contract for Access and Referral Management (PRIMA) service.
  • 2020 HPC manages the COVID-19 response with a rapid pivot to delivering care to clients online, by video or by phone, continued face-to-face consultation where possible, and transitioned staff to working from home arrangements.
  • 2020 HPC becomes a member of ACON’s Pride in Health & Wellbeing program.
  • 2021 NDIS Allied Health services expand, and HPC begins offering NDIS services in Kingscliff and surrounding regions.
  • 2022 HPC’s Stretch Reconciliation Action Plan is endorsed by Reconciliation Australia.