September 2015

The Federal Government has launched the consultation phase of its  Medicare Benefits Schedule (MBS) Review Taskforce and all healthcare professionals are encouraged to take part. The consultation serves as a timely reminder of the importance for us as GPs to engage and provide feedback in order to ensure the future quality of primary healthcare is upheld. The RACGP  released a statement  yesterday calling for the review to prioritise the delivery of modern, efficient, quality, patient-focused care. We strongly support reducing waste in the health s...

The 58th Council of the RAGCP was officially appointed at GP15 in Melbourne last week. Congratulations to Dr Tim Koh, who has assumed the role of Chair of Council. Dr Koh is a full-time practising GP from Perth and is also Chair of the RACGP WA Faculty. Dr Bastian Seidel joins Council as Chair of the Tasmania Faculty. Dr Seidel is a rural GP from the Huon Valley, south-west of Hobart. Dr Edwin Kruys has been appointed Chair of the Queensland Faculty. He is a full-time practising GP on state’s the Sunshine Coast. The 58th Council of the RACGP will...

‘RACGP – our story’ is now available to watch on the  RACGP YouTube channel . This video tells the story of general practice, depicting the range of care delivered every day by Australian GPs. Highlights from GP15, including interviews with speakers, the keynote address from Dr Alessandro Demaio and an interview with Federal Health Minister, Sussan Ley, are also now available to view on the RACGP  Facebook ,  Twitter  and  YouTube  pages.

If your patient is considering undergoing female genital cosmetic surgery (FGCS), listen to them and explore the reasons for concern or requests for FGCS. Discuss the lack of long-term data on outcomes and satisfaction, inform them about the risks of the procedures and, where appropriate, referral to appropriate colleagues (such as gynaecologists, women’s health GPs and plastic surgeons) can be made. Download your copy of the  Female genital cosmetic surgery: a resource for GPs and other health professionals  from the  RACGP website .

Whoever pays the piper calls the tune. Never was this proverb so apparently true as in planning for the future of general practice training in Australia. Maintaining and continually improving quality general practice training is core business for the RACGP. The RACGP has actively participated in stakeholder meetings alongside all other general practice organisations over the last 12 months in relation to changes in general practice education.  At the beginning of 2015, regional training organisation (RTO) boundaries were an area of active discuss...

The Federal Government announced a $100 million  ‘Women’s Safety Package to Stop the Violence’  on Thursday, which includes working with the RACGP to develop and deliver specialised training to GPs across the country. The RACGP has welcomed the announcement as an important step in addressing domestic and family violence in Australia. Detail on the funding amount and specifics around how the development and deliverance of specialised training are yet to be confirmed by the Government. The RACGP sets and provides a Curriculum for Australian General ...

GP15  has been and gone and, yet again, it was a huge success. More than 1600 delegates attended the conference at the Melbourne Convention and Exhibition Centre this week under the theme, ‘Our future in practice’. Most importantly, the RACGP Conference for General Practice is an educational event. Feedback from this year’s delegates again indicates they found the high quality and variety of education sessions to be the highlight, and the primary reason they would recommend it to their peers. Wednesday’s closing plenary was a reflective and jovial...

The RACGP has produced a series of videos from GP15, including highlights, interviews with speakers, the keynote address from Dr Alessandro Demaio and an interview with Sussan Ley. These highlights and interviews will continue to be pushed out via the FACGP  Facebook ,  Twitter  and  YouTube  pages over the coming weeks. Photos are also available now via the RACGP  Facebook  page.