The Rural Doctors Association of Australia says there are “more than enough” young doctors graduating to service the health needs of the nation.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
But not enough young doctors moving to rural areas.
The federal government has promised a review of the distribution of medical school places in Australia, with a focus on encouraging more young doctors to train and practice in rural areas.
The announcement follows outrage in Inverell and Glen Innes after several patients reported waiting hours for emergency care because there was no locum doctor available.
The Rural Doctors Association of Australia (RDAA) has welcomed today's announcement by the Federal Government that it will undertake a review of the distribution of medical school places in Australia, with a focus on encouraging more doctors to train and ultimately practise in rural and remote areas.
In announcing the review, the Federal Assistant Minister for Rural Health, Dr David Gillespie MP, emphasised the Government's continuing priority to address the shortage of doctors in regional, rural and remote areas, and to develop ways in which this shortage can best be addressed.
"We strongly welcome this important review" RDAA President, Dr Ewen McPhee, said.
"It is clear that we already have more than enough doctors graduating from our universities to meet Australia's overall doctor workforce needs now and into the future — but we still do not have enough young doctors choosing a career in rural and remote practice, whether that be as a general practitioner or another type of specialist.
"There is a pressing need to address this continuing mal-distribution of doctors, and to shape both medical education policies and medical workforce policies to address this challenge at all stages of a doctor's career — starting from the day they apply for a place in medical school.
"Research has shown repeatedly over many years that those who come from rural areas, or undertake medical studies or extended clinical placements in rural areas, are the most likely to return to rural or remote areas to work once they graduate from medical school.
"This is because they get to see how wonderfully rewarding a career as a rural doctor can be.
"To this end, the more medical school places that can be located in regional, rural and remote locations, the better. This could include expanding the existing Rural Clinical Schools across Australia.
"We also appreciate the strong recognition from Minister Gillespie of the challenges that young medical graduates face once they leave university and start to plan the next step in their medical career — this inevitably involves additional training in general practice or another specialty, and can be the point at which a young doctor gravitates to the city due to an often perceived lack of career opportunities in regional, rural and remote areas. We need to bust this myth.
"Queensland's Rural Generalist Pathway is a prime example of the fact that advanced medical training can be delivered very successfully in regional, rural and remote areas — and it can actually lead to the re-invigoration of medical services like obstetrics in towns that had previously lost these services.
"We are very keen to see the Federal Government's election promise of a National Rural Generalist Framework, and associated training pathway, implemented as soon as possible, so we can start to replicate the success of Queensland's Rural Generalist Pathway right across the country.
"We look forward to working with Minister Gillespie, his department and other stakeholders on this important review."
