RACGP Council welcomes two new Faculty Chairs
I am pleased to announce the RACGP 58th Council will be joined by two new Faculty Chairs. From 22 September Dr Bastian Seidel will assume the role of Chair of the Tasmania Faculty and Dr Edwin Kruys as Chair of the Queensland Faculty. Both Bastian and Edwin are outstanding representatives for the general practice profession. They share a common passion for advocacy and social media engagement. I am equally pleased to advise that A/Prof Morton Rawlin has been re-elected as Chair of the Victoria Faculty.
Bastian has been heavily involved in the work of the RACGP Tasmania Faculty, having held the post of Deputy Chair for the past four years. After completing a PhD in paediatrics in Leipzig, Bastian moved to the UK to undertake his general practice training and gained his MRCGP in 2007. He then moved to South Australia where he conducted GP research, in part under former SA&NT Faculty Chair Prof Nigel Stocks at the University of Adelaide. Bastian then moved to Tasmania and settled in the Huon Valley, 40 kilometres south of Hobart where he is medical director of the Huon Valley Health Centre and a Clinical Professor at the University of Tasmania. Bastian is a seasoned media spokesperson for the RACGP as well as an avid researcher, author and social media commentator.
Edwin is a graduate of the University of Amsterdam and after completing his GP training in the Netherlands, moved to Australia where he worked in various rural and remote locations. These included Cooktown, Wujal Wujal and Hopevale Aboriginal Communities in Cape York, and Halls Creek in the Kimberley, Western Australia. Edwin practiced in the rural WA town of Geraldton for seven years as co-owner of a 20-doctor practice before moving back to the Sunshine Coast in Queensland in 2014. Edwin is well known for his highly popular general practice blog Doctorsbag.net through which comments on healthcare politics, e-health and social media.
I look forward to working with them, and am sure their passion and enthusiasm for quality General Practice will further enrich Council deliberations. I would also like to take this opportunity to express my sincere gratitude to Dr David Knowles and Dr Eleanor Chew for their unwavering commitment to the RACGP during their term on Council. Both have represented the profession with absolute integrity. On behalf of all RACGP members, I thank them both and have no doubt they will continue to play a significant role in the RACGP’s future.
Dr Frank R Jones
RACGP President
Facebook photo competition winners announced
The RACGP has announced the five winners of its Facebook ‘Win a trip to GP15’ photo sharing competition. RACGP member medical students, interns, PGY2–3 doctors or GP registrars considering or currently working towards a career in general practice were invited to submit a photo demonstrating 'how general practice fits into your daily life'. We received 95 fantastic entries and are delighted to announce our winners Jessie Ling, Katie Drewett, Danielle Todd, Lawrence Ling and Benjamin Whittaker who will be joining us at GP15 in Melbourne next month.
ERPT to remain available through paid subscription
Members are advised that due to a cease in government funding for the Emergency Response Planning Tool (ERPT), this service will no longer be available free of charge. Practices can still access the ERPT through a paid subscription, supported by software developer HealthPoint. The RACGP would like to clarify that use of ERPT is not required for the purpose of accreditation, however it is a user-friendly tool practices can use to fulfil their disaster management planning accreditation requirement.
RACGP feedback poll – The Care Coordination and Supplementary Services program
The Care Coordination and Supplementary Services program is part of the Department of Health’s Indigenous Australians’ Health Programme (established in July 2014), formerly known as the Indigenous Chronic Disease Package. GPs can refer their Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander patients to the program as long as their practice is participating in the Practice Incentives Program (PIP), and can access the Indigenous Health Incentive.
Primary Health Networks (PHNs) are the facilitators of the Care Coordination and Supplementary Services program. PHNs can currently provide care co-ordinators to assist Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander patients with a chronic disease in organising and accessing their healthcare appointments. Flexible funding is also available to assist patients with transport, fees and medical devices.
We are seeking GPs’ input to inform the advocacy work undertaken by the RACGP on the future direction of the Care Coordination and Supplementary Services program, and we invite you to participate in the current poll.