Glen Innes residents and Mr Marshall are disputing Hunter New England Health's claims a doctor was on duty at the local hospital on the last weekend in November. 

Mr Marshall was told that at Glen Innes Hospital on the last weekend in November patients were being turned away from the hospital and directed to Armidale.

According to one claim made to Mr Marshall, a patient presented with severe pain from a double hernia and was told that there was nothing that could be done as there was no doctor on duty.

Mr Marshall was told that patient was turned away without pain relief. 

However, Hunter New England Health Chief Executive Michael DiRienzo disputes those claims.

“On the weekend beginning Friday 25 November a doctor was available at Glen Innes Hospital,” he said.

“A local GP, who has admitting rights to the Hospital and regularly participates in the Emergency Department roster, was available to cover the emergency department all weekend.”

But Local MP Adam Marshall is hoping mad at Mr DiRienzo and along with a swag of locals disputes his claims.

“A doctor may have been "available" but there was no doctor there, I can assure you,” he said.

“If there was a doctor present then the patient would have been treated by the doctor - and he wasn't.

“I was gobsmacked by Mr DiRienzo’s statement that a doctor was available, I call into question Hunter New England Health’s sincerity in the way they are dealing with the community and I suggest that either Mr DiRienzo is treating the community as fools or he isn't aware of what is really going on in his hospitals.

“I will be taking the communities strong concern with me to our meeting and I will be asking for a change in the way the hospital is staffed.”

Local resident Navanka Fletcher also disputes Mr DiRienzo’s claims.

“If there was a doctor available then why was my mother ambulanced to Armidale without seeing a doctor in Glen Innes because there was no doctor available on Sunday,” she said.

“The hospital staff and ambulance staff were amazing to deal with but there was definitely not a doctor there to look at any patients.”

Local resident Lisa Joy Mullen agreed with Miss Fletcher.

“There was no doctor there as I know my daughter in law was turned away,” she said.