RACGP Standards for general practices

Consumer information

What are the Standards?

The RACGP Standards for general practices (4th edition) (the Standards) are a framework for quality care and risk management in Australian general practice. The Standards help general practice teams deliver better health outcomes for their patients.

The Standards focus on safety, quality and accountability – they do not prescribe how a practice should provide clinical care.

A consumer representative was on the National Expert Committee that developed the 4th edition Standards and a number of consumer organisations provided valuable input to the development of the Standards.

Why are the Standards important for patients?

The RACGP Standards for general practices (4th edition) are important for patients because they help general practices build safety and quality into their practice systems so they can deliver excellent healthcare to their patients. The Standards do not tell GPs how to treat patients – those decisions are part of the private conversation between a GP and an individual patient during a consultation.

Although all of the Standards are important in helping general practices deliver high quality healthcare, there are some areas that are particularly focussed on the partnership between GPs and patients. You may like to look at these particular criteria as examples:

Criterion 1.1.1 Scheduling care in opening hours
Criterion 1.1.3 Home and other visits
Criterion 1.1.4 Care outside normal opening hours
Criterion 1.2.1 Practice information
Criterion 1.2.2 Informed patient decisions
Criterion 1.3.1 Health promotion and preventive care
Criterion 1.4.1 Consistent evidence based practice
Criterion 1.5.1 Continuity of comprehensive care and the therapeutic relationship
Criterion 1.6.1 Engaging with other services
Criterion 2.1.1 Respectful and culturally appropriate care
Criterion 2.1.2 Patient feedback
Criterion 5.1.1 Practice facilities.

What does ‘accreditation’ mean?

Whatever the structure or setting of a general practice, most standards and related criteria will be relevant and will enable practices to build quality and safety into their systems.

Practices can conduct a self assessment against the Standards.

Alternatively, practices which meet the RACGP definition of a general practice can seek independent accreditation against the Standards as a tangible way of demonstrating their commitment to safe and high quality health care. Practices seeking accreditation are formally surveyed by two or more surveyors and one of the surveyors must be a GP to make sure the practice demonstrates it has met all the Standards.

Accreditation is not mandatory but around 80% of general practices in Australia are formally accredited. You can tell if a general practice is accredited by the certificate or accreditation logo which most accredited practices display in their reception area. If you are not sure whether a general practice is accredited, you can always ask the reception staff.

How can I give my GP feedback?

GPs greatly value feedback from patients because it helps them improve their practice systems and the quality of the healthcare services they provide. Patient feedback is so important that the Standards contain a separate criterion dedicated to this issue (see Criterion 2.1.2 Patient feedback).

If you want to give the practice feedback – whether good or bad – you could check with the receptionist about the best way to do this. Alternatively, you could simply talk to your GP or write them a brief letter.

How can I get help to resolve an issue?

If you have struck some kind of problem with the general practice you attend, you are encouraged to discuss the matter with practice staff first to see if it can be quickly resolved to your satisfaction. Generally speaking, this is the best course of action to take because it normally clears up any misunderstandings that may have caused the problem in the first place. It also means the practice can change its systems, if this is needed, to prevent a similar episode from re-occuring, so that all patients may benefit as well as you.

If you are not able to resolve your issue by direct communication at the practice level, you can contact the office of the health complaints commissioner in your state or territory and get help to mediate a resolution to the problem at hand. The health complaints commissioner may ask you to make a brief, signed statement that describes your concerns and what action you think is required to have the matter resolved.

Why is my cultural background important?

The Standards ask general practices to find out about patients’ cultural backgrounds, including Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander status, so GPs can provide healthcare and preventive care that is customised to the individual patient. Research shows us that some cultural backgrounds are associated with known risk factors such as diabetes, heart disease or high blood pressure. This means that if a GP is aware of a patient’s cultural background, healthcare can be focused on known risk factors in addition to the specific reason for a patient’s visit.

It is most important to realise that information about your cultural background is not collected to discriminate against you or provide a lower standard of care.

Where can I get information about medications?

You can get helpful information about medicines from:

Where can I get information about medical conditions?

You can get helpful information about medical conditions and healthy lifestyles at www.betterhealth.vic.gov.au or www.healthinsite.gov.au. This information is also available in many languages other than English at these websites.

What are my rights as a patient?

The Australian Commission on Safety and Quality in Health Care has published the Australian Charter of Healthcare Rights for people receiving or seeking healthcare in all settings in Australia. The Charter is available at www.health.gov.au/internet/safety/publishing.nsf/Content/PriorityProgram-01.

What are my responsibilities as a patient?

To get the very best from the healthcare provided by your GP there are several helpful things you can do.

  • Be on time for your appointment
  • Notify reception of any changes to your contact details
  • Tell your doctor about any allergies or drug reactions you have had
  • Give your doctor all the information that is relevant to your visit.
  • Read any information provided by the practice. Obtain a copy of the practice information sheet – this will contain a lot of important information about many aspects of the practice and is a useful resource to keep at home
  • Ask for any information you want about fees and how the practice bills
  • Ask for any clarification you want about a diagnosis or treatment options suggested by your doctor
  • Ask for any clarification you want about medications suggested by your doctor
  • Keep up with any treatment agreed between you and your doctor
  • Make sure you take any tests agreed between you and your doctor
  • If the practice contacts you to advise your test results are abnormal, make sure you undertake any action recommended by the practice (eg a follow up appointment or a further test)
  • Contact the practice to find out the results of any tests you have had
  • Contact the practice if your condition fails to improve or if you have any bad reactions to medication or any other treatment program agreed between you and your doctor
  • Treat the general practice team with the same respect and courtesy that you expect of them
  • Give feedback to the practice (positive or negative) about any issue that has been an important aspect of your experience of healthcare provided by the practice.

What if I need somebody to accompany me to my GP?

You have every right to have somebody accompany you on a visit to your GP (eg. carer, family member or interpreter) irrespective of how this person assists you (eg. whether the person helps you get to and from the clinic or helps you understand information being provided by your GP).

You also have the right to decide whether you want this person to be present during the consultation with your GP or whether you would prefer them to wait in the reception area during the consultation.

Will there be a height adjustable bed in the practice?

The RACGP acknowledges that height adjustable beds are helpful for patients with impaired mobility. The RACGP Standards for general practices (4th edition) therefore require practices to have at least one height adjustable bed. Each general practice will decide the best place for their height adjustable bed – some practices will have the height adjustable bed in a consultation room and some practices will have it in a treatment area.

In rare instances where the physical space of a practice is limited, it may not be possible for the practice to accommodate a height adjustable bed. In these exceptional circumstances, practices still need to accommodate the needs of patients with limited mobility and protect the occupational health and safety of their practice staff.

How can I get access to my own health information?

The National Privacy Principles give you the right to seek access to health information which a general practice holds about you.

General practices may give you access to your own health information in a number of different ways and will generally try to provide access in the form you request. For example you may:

  • Obtain a summary of your health information. In general, a summary will include key information (eg. known allergies, adverse drug reactions, current medicines list, current health problems, relevant past health history) and will be sufficient for good continuity of your healthcare
  • Look at your health information and discuss it with your GP
  • Obtain a copy of the health information (eg. a photocopy of a paper record or a copy of an x-ray) or take notes on the information
  • Obtain a print-out of your health information if it is stored electronically or obtain an electronic copy of the information.

You are not legally obliged to put your request to access your own health information in writing but if your request is more complicated or if your request involves collating information from both paper and electronic sources, your GP may ask you to put your request in writing to make sure your request is clearly understood.

If you make a request to access your own health information, your GP will want to verify your identity to ensure your health information is not mistakenly disclosed to the wrong patient.
You will not be charged for lodging a request to access your own health information but you may be charged for information that is provided. For example, the practice may ask you to cover any administrative costs (eg. photocopying records or reports, copies of x-ray films or staff time involved in processing your request).

There are a few exceptional circumstances where a general practice can deny or limit your access to your own health information (eg. if your health record contains information about another person or if there is a serious risk to your life or health).

If you would like more information about accessing your health information, you may like to check the website of the Australian Government Office of the Privacy Commissioner at www.privacy.gov.au .

What if I have another question about the Standards?

If you have another question, first check the RACGP Standards for general practices (4th edition) for the information you are seeking. Use the index at the back for help.

If you can’t find the information you are seeking within the Standards, you may like to contact the Standards Team within the Clinical Improvement Unit at the RACGP. Send your query here.



Last Modified: 5 November 2010
Authorised By: Standards

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