Competencies arranged by Milestone

Fellowship

Progressive capability profile of the specialist general practitioner

Table of contents

Last revised: 11 Aug 2025

Competencies at fellowship level

The specialist GP as a communicator

Capability	Theme	Fellowship Level Competencies
Communicate effectively with patients and families	Patient-centred communication	Communicate effectively, respectfully and empathically with patients, families and carers with proactive use of appropriate resources
	Communication where there are language barriers	Communicate effectively, respectfully and empathically with patients where there are language barriers, with proactive use of appropriate resources
	Navigating challenging conversations	Communicate effectively in a sensitive, compassionate manner in challenging conversations
	Shared decision making	Facilitate shared decision-making to align patient values, goals and preferences to develop a personalised plan
	Therapeutic relationship	Establish and maintain therapeutic relationships, using contextual awareness in encounters that are challenging including when there are different frames of reference
	Navigating transference and countertransference	Utilise transference and countertransference to achieve therapeutic benefit while managing boundaries
Practice culturally respectful, responsive and safe communication	Communicating with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peoples	Demonstrate cultural safety through self-reflection and integration of cultural perspectives, beliefs and the impact of historical events to enhance communication with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peoples
	Communicating with Culturally and Linguistically Diverse peoples	Integrate cultural perspectives, beliefs and effects of events to provide culturally safe and effective communication
Communicate relevant information efficiently to others involved in a patients care	Team communication and handover	Effectively and efficiently communicate with the care team in a manner that allows all to understand their roles in assisting the patient
	Communication with others in the practice	Effectively and constructively communicate with others in the practice to support optimal performance of each person and the practice

The specialist GP as a  clinician

Capability	Theme	Fellowship Level Competencies
Provide person-centred and comprehensive care, using a biopsychosocial approach	Person-centred approach	Accommodate patients’ experiences and perspectives and integrate these into the ongoing provision of whole person care
	Comprehensive care with continuity	Provide comprehensive care with appropriate continuity
	Strengths based approaches with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peoples	Uphold the principle of self-determination by empowering Aboriginal and Torres Strait Peoples to have a voice in their healthcare decisions, fostering culturally safe, person-centred approaches that promote autonomy and equitable health outcomes
	Trauma-informed	Integrate trauma-informed care principles and adapt approaches through reflective practice, ensuring interventions promote healing, resilience, and trust in the therapeutic relationship
Conduct consultations to effectively facilitate care	Consultation management	Utilises structured consultations with effective agenda prioritisation and time management, encompassing a holistic approach
Apply expert medical knowledge and skills in assessing and diagnosing conditions	Clinical information gathering	While considering the patient and context obtain relevant history, examination and investigations to inform care
	Diagnostic reasoning	Interpret, synthesise and prioritise clinical data in clinical reasoning, and reappraisal over time to integrate new information and modify diagnostic reasoning
Manage the full range of presentations including providing first contact access	Urgent, emergent, time sensitive care	Manage urgent, emergent, and complex acute situations in line with contemporary practice in the general practice environment
	Management planning	Develop holistic, rational, patient-centred management plans that are evidence-informed, implementable and revised as needed
	Prescribing	Undertake rational, safe prescribing, deprescribing, and medication monitoring
	Procedures	Maintain currency in safely undertaking procedures relevant to the context of practice
Manage uncertainty and assess undifferentiated presentations	Management of uncertainty	Manage uncertainty, complexity and ongoing undifferentiated presentations
	Assessment and management of undifferentiated presentations	Assess and manage the full range of presentations including safety-netting and empowering patient self-efficacy
Promote health and deliver preventive care	Promoting health and wellbeing	Provide evidence-informed personalised preventive care and support relevant to the patient’s context, including access to screening and systems for recall
	Health education and health literacy	Use a range of strategies and resources to provide appropriately detailed health education relevant to the patient context
	Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peoples	Incorporates strengths-based approaches into health promotion activities by recognising and building on the cultural, social, and community strengths of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peoples
	Public health	Identify and manage emerging public health risks in the local community

The specialist GP as a  health advocate and leader

Capability	Theme	Fellowship Level Competencies
Advocate for access to care	Advocate for individual patients	Use innovative approaches to overcome obstacles to care for individuals
	Addressing health inequality and inequity	Identify strategies to improve health equality and equity in the local community
	Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Health	Identify opportunities for engaging with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander health organisations and health leaders that are progressing health equity and support their efforts to inform policy development and health system reform
	Systemic causes of inequity, including discrimination and racism	Advocate for systemic changes to optimise health outcomes
Coordinate care and lead healthcare teams	Working within a multi-disciplinary team	Lead collaborative healthcare teams providing continuity, and efficient, effective care respectful of patient preferences
Coordinate care and lead healthcare teams	Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Health	Provide opportunities to elevate Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander health expertise to strengthen culturally informed and responsive care that improves health outcomes
Responsibly steward healthcare system utilisation	Rational use of Australian healthcare system	Utilise health system resources responsibly, effectively and efficiently
Promote practice quality, safety and viability	Technology	Use developing technology and eHealth systems in practice to optimise patient care
	Practice systems	Contribute to identifying and implementing improvements in practice systems
	Near misses and adverse events (including critical incidents)	Participate in or lead review of near misses and adverse events (including critical incidents) and support quality clinical governance in own practice
	Quality improvement initiatives	Identify and lead quality improvement initiatives
	General practice as a business	Understand the basis of the management of a general practice as an ethical, legal and viable business
	Safe workplaces	Actively promote a work environment that is physically, mentally and culturally safe and supportive, which facilitates clinical safety

The specialist GP as a  professional

Capability	Theme	Fellowship Level Competencies
Behave in a professional and ethical way	Professional behaviour	Be an exemplar of professional behaviour and consistently follow professional codes of conduct in practice and reflect on own adherence. Understand own role as part of a collective to follow expected professional standards
	Therapeutic boundaries	Identify potential threats to therapeutic boundaries and take preventive measures to preserve therapeutic boundaries
	Ethical issues	Understand and navigate complexities in ethical practice to achieve a high level of ethical practice
Practice self-care	Self-care	Develop and implement plans to enhance personal wellbeing to allow for optimal professional performance and support colleagues in practicing self-care
Engage in reflective practice and ongoing learning	Feedback and learning	Foster environments that encourage feedback and participate in professional development relevant to current and future practice
Engage in reflective practice and ongoing learning	Reflective practice	Proactively engage in reflective practice and utilise it to continually improve
Understand own professional competency	Self-evaluation to enhance care provision	Have strategies to identify quality practice in unfamiliar environments and be able to judge one's own provision of care in any setting
Understand own professional competency	Cultural competency	Undertake regular critical reflection on own practice and utilise insights to continually improve cultural safety of patient care
Meet legal and duty of care responsibilities	Legal obligations	Manage complex legal issues in practice
Meet legal and duty of care responsibilities	Medical records and reports	Synthesise clinical information for accurate medicolegal reports which may include providing a professional opinion

The specialist GP as a  scientist, educator and researcher

Capability	Theme	Fellowship Level Competencies
Integrate best available scientific evidence into practice	Critical appraisal and integration of evidence	Integrate relevant clinical guidelines, research evidence and practice data into clinical practice
Support learning and improvement through education, mentoring, and engagement with research	Educator and mentor	Provide education, teaching and mentoring to colleagues, students, and others in the practice
	Research literacy	Identify researchable questions and topics that warrant further research. Demonstrate an understanding of how common research and evaluation methods relevant to the general practice context
	Research engagement	Participate in appropriate research as opportunities arise. Identify gaps in the research literature in areas of interest, and the importance of research evidence in advocacy for patients and general practice
	Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Health Research	Engage in culturally safe research as opportunities arise by partnering with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peoples, upholding data sovereignty, and applying strengths-based approaches. Ensure reciprocity in research by valuing community priorities, sharing findings meaningfully, and fostering sustainable benefits

Advertising