While in Parliament last week, Mr Gee spoke about the desperate need for the school, which he says would address the doctor shortage in rural and regional areas.

“There is a chronic shortage of doctors in the bush, and people of country Australia are tired of it,” he said.  “They're tired of having to wait weeks or months just to see a GP. They're tired of not being able to replace doctors when they leave town or retire.”

Mr Gee said it is crucial that people from rural and regional areas are given the opportunity to study medicine closer to home, as they are more likely to want to work in the bush when their training is complete. 

Statistics support what he has to say. 

“Only about eight per cent of medical students trained by the big city universities go on to practice medicine in the country,” Mr Gee said.

“Charles Sturt University has a plan to do something about this by starting a country medical school that will train doctors in the bush for practice in the bush.” 

CSU plans to set aside 80 per cent of its places for country students.

An independent economic impact assessment also found that the medical school would help solve doctor shortages in regional NSW and Victoria by providing around 90 doctors each year once fully operational.

“Charles Sturt University knows how to train a country workforce,” Mr Gee said.

“It has repeatedly shown that students who train in the country are far more likely to live and work in the bush after they graduate. For example, 70 per cent of inland accountants in New South Wales are Charles Sturt University graduates.

“Country people are tired of the inequality between the city and the bush. It's time for action. The time for the Murray-Darling Medical School has come.”