LONG time East Fremantle GP Dr Karutha Jayaraman has added his voice to the former Woodside maternity hospital development controversy.

Recently DrJaya, Dr J – or Jaya as most patients call him – said he couldn’t see why the former maternity hospital couldn’t be used for other community purposes. 

He suggested the East Fremantle council should purchase the site and create an “inviting” space that attracted people from all over the place. 

Possibly a museum, a history centre or meeting place that could be used for all sorts of things to benefit locals.

Jaya said the last thing the area needed was another nursing home. 

• The charming Dr Jaya.

With a circular sweep of his hand at his Bicton practice he said the area already had lots of nursing homes. 

“Why do we need any more,” he asks. 

As a rare, fast-diminishing breed of GP who still does rounds visiting patients – many in nursing homes – we found Jaya’s comments intriguing so went in search of any data to support his observations.

And hey presto, some interesting info surfaced. 

The 2021 Census data showed the East Freo postcode 6158 had 103 aged care places for each 1,000 people over 70 whereas the whole of the south west area of the metropolitan area has only 72.9. 

So Dr Jaya’s observation is correct: other areas have a shortfall of places and therefore a greater need for new development.