Patients in an outback town will be assessed by nurses after the community's only GP resigned over what he described as a lack of support and an "overwhelming" emotional load.
Scott Lewis has marked his final day as the doctor at the remote Wudinna Medical Practice on South Australia's Eyre Peninsula after 14 years.
Dr Lewis, who handed in his resignation in November, said he could no longer deal with "increasing pressure" on the regional health system.
"We are working in an environment that's not supportive of rural communities and not supportive of rural workforce," he said.
"Both in terms of financial support and employment engagement, and also in terms of facilities equipped to train."
Dr Lewis said he had contacted SA Health for several years, concerned the system would collapse if the issue of rural doctors shortages wasn't addressed.
He said the pressure started to take a toll, and Friday was his last day on the job.
"[I wanted] professional support or systemic support and I wasn't seeing that," he said.
"That led to me pulling the pin and moving on."
Dr Lewis's resignation comes amid stalled negotiations between the state government, the Rural Doctors Association of SA and the Australian Medical Association.
South Australia's health steering committee was set up two years ago to negotiate better pay and conditions for rural doctors to entice more to the regions.
The Eyre and Far North Local Health Network said in a statement that it would work with the Wudinna Hospital and the local council to secure a permanent GP and in the meantime patients would be assessed by nurses.
But Dr Lewis said it could take a while to get a replacement doctor.
"It's not just a problem limited to Wudinna," he said.
Despite resigning out of frustration, Dr Lewis said he would miss the remote town of Wudinna, where he became a household name in the community.
"I'm very fond of the people here and they've become my extended family," Dr Lewis said.
"I've seen a generation of life here in Wudinna."
