July 2015

Recent years have seen a rapid increase in the number of GPs and general practices embracing social media and communicating online with colleagues, the public and patients. The RACGP has been part of this social media uptake, recognising the fact it is a great way for GPs to access information and engage in conversation, and over the past year has increased its Twitter followers to more than 8000 and doubled its Facebook likes to almost 5000.  Social media creates new opportunities and has many benefits, but it also presents risks for GPs and t...

The RACGP’s  community awareness television commercial  will resume airing from Sunday night (2 August). Aimed at patients and the broader public, the commercial is part of the ongoing campaign designed to raise awareness of the vital role GPs play in the community.  The RACGP has  resources available for GPs  and encourages members to continue using the campaign as an opportunity to have a conversation with patients and key people in the community about the importance of general practice, training and accreditation standards, and why ‘The good GP n...

The RACGP has released a guide to help inform GPs and health professionals about female genital cosmetic surgery (FGCS).  Female genital cosmetic surgery: A resource for general practitioners and other health professionals  includes information about factors influencing demand for FGCS and provides a set of recommendations on how to manage women requesting referral or expressing concern regarding their genitalia. It outlines risks and complications associated with surgery and advises how to appropriately deal with requests for referral from adoles...

As announced in the 2015–16 federal budget, the Federal Government has committed to providing $34.3 million over two years to ‘improve efficiencies’ in the Medicare Benefits Schedule (MBS). The funding will establish three groups supporting three key pieces of work, including the MBS Review Taskforce, the Primary Healthcare Advisory Group and the Medicare Compliance Review.   The  Primary Healthcare Advisory Group (PHCAG)  will be examining opportunities for reform and to develop them into a series of proposals for consultation, prior to reporting...

Every year in Australia nearly 7 million prescriptions for benzodiazepines are issued, most commonly to treat anxiety and insomnia. This high uptake has led to a growing apprehension of the harms associated with both the authorised and unauthorised use of benzodiazepines. It is vital that GPs are aware of the issues benzodiazepines have created at a broad society level and among individual patients. With this in mind, the RACGP has created a guide to help GPs –  Prescribing drugs of dependence in general practice, Part B: Benzodiazepines . The gu...

Members who have elected to receive a hard copy  Notice of AGM  will be sent this years’ notice together with the August issue of  Australian Family Physician  (AFP). The RACGP’s 58th AGM will be held at the Melbourne Convention and Exhibition Centre on Tuesday 22 September at 5.00 pm (AEST) as part of GP15, the RACGP’s annual conference for general practice. The Notice includes an agenda and proxy form for members who are unable to attend in person. Those members who intend to vote by proxy will need to complete and return this form, ensuring it is...

The  Guidelines for preventive activities in general practice  or the ‘red book’ as it is more commonly known, is one of the flagship resources of the RACGP, providing GPs with evidence based advice for more than 25 years. To ensure the red book’s currency and accuracy, the entire contents are reviewed and updated every few years. The red book review is currently underway and the editorial committee meet monthly to review and discuss content. The project is chaired by Professor Nick Zwar and includes well known GPs with expertise and experience de...

It is important to review renally excreted medications, as well as avoid nephrotoxic medications in people with chronic kidney disease (CKD). Dosage reduction or cessation of renally excreted medications is generally required once the glomerular filtration rate (GFR) falls below 60 mL/min/1.73m2.  Patients with CKD and a comorbid condition may require dose adjustment in some of their medications (eg metformin).  The combination of ACE inhibitor (or ARB), diuretic and NSAID or COX-2 inhibitor (except low-dose aspirin) can result in acute kidney injur...