This Rural Life – calling all photography enthusiasts
RACGP Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Health and RACGP Rural invite our members to participate in a photo competition to find the feature image for the ‘This Rural Life’ project.
Some great prizes are on offer.
Entries to the photo competition should feature your experience working in primary care in rural Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander health.
The competition closes Monday 9 August.
Visit our website to find out more and enter the competition, and read about the project in newsGP.
Assigning a Medicare benefit for MBS telehealth items
The Department of Health has confirmed that, for the temporary COVID-19 MBS telehealth (video and telephone) items only, documenting a patient’s agreement to assign their benefit as full payment for the service within clinical notes is sufficient evidence of the assignment of benefit
This means that for these services agreement can be obtained through one of three methods:
This agreement can be provided by a patient or another person, such as a carer or family member. Practitioners should keep records that show services were provided, and that the patient agreed Medicare benefits could be paid directly to the practitioner.
Simplifying and improving your CPD experience
We’re always looking for ways to enhance and streamline our CPD program to make sure your experience is simpler, stronger and seamless.
We’ve introduced more improvements to your myCPD to save you time and personalise your experience:
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Personalised search – select your learning interests for a refined search based on your preferences
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Bookmarks – save time and find courses seamlessly by bookmarking the activities that interest you
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Notifications – set and customise reminders for CPD activities so you never miss out
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Attendance certificates – easily upload attendance certificates to your CPD record history, saving you time and keeping them all in one place.
Find out more about the new myCPD features on our website.
Changes to the existing relationship requirement for GP telehealth services
To access MBS telehealth services from a GP, patients must have had a face-to-face attendance with the GP providing the service, or another practitioner at the same practice, at least once in the previous 12 months.
There are limited exceptions to this rule, including for people in COVID-19-affected areas.
As of 16 July 2021, the test for exempting patients whose movement is restricted by a state/territory public health order has been replaced with three criteria. The patient is:
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in COVID-19 isolation because of a state or territory public health order
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in COVID-19 quarantine because of a state or territory public health order
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located in a COVID-19 hotspot as declared by the Commonwealth Chief Medical Officer.
An exemption to the requirement has also been introduced for mental health and eating disorder services, effective 21 July 2021.
Visit our website for more information.
Using medical records for care, teaching and quality improvement
Date: Thursday 12 August 2021
Time: 7.00–8.15 pm AEST
GPs thoroughly document patient information in electronic medical records (EMRs) to ensure there is continuity and integration of care provided directly and through referral networks.
How has this information been used to deliver and monitor general practice care? Can EMRs be better used to improve clinical and managerial decisions in the context of quality improvement?
This webinar will discuss the benefits of better data quality and limitations in the use of EMRs, and will feature an interactive panel session that will explore solutions to EMR challenges faced by GPs.
Register now.
New MBS items for smoking cessation services
On 21 July 2021, six new MBS items were introduced for nicotine and smoking cessation counselling provided by GPs. There are face-to-face and telehealth items (video and phone) available, which are equivalent in value to Level B and C attendances.
The new items allow Medicare benefits to be paid for telehealth services relating to nicotine and smoking cessation counselling without the requirement for the patient to have an established clinical relationship with the GP.
These items are temporary and will cease on 30 June 2022.
Visit our website for more information, including full item descriptors and rebates.
Future Leaders 2022 information webinar
Date: Monday 16 August 2021
Time: 7.00–7.30 pm AEST
The RACGP Future Leaders Program gives GPs the confidence to lead change in their community.
Designed for RACGP Fellows with some leadership experience, the program can help you develop your skills as a leader, identify your strengths, think strategically, and produce beneficial change for the health community
Those interested in the program are encouraged to register for our 2022 Future Leaders information webinar.
Hosted by Oliver Shultz, the RACGP’s Leadership Development Consultant, the webinar will discuss the application process and explain how the program can drive change within Australian general practice.
This is an exclusive webinar for RACGP members, free of charge.
Register for the webinar on our website.
Online My Health Record resources: eRequesting and advance care planning
eRequesting (electronic requesting) enables pathology and diagnostic imaging requests to be transferred from your general practice clinical information system (CIS) directly to the pathology or diagnostic imaging provider via secure electronic communication.
In partnership with the Australian Digital Health Agency, we’ve developed an on-demand webinar to discuss how eRequesting works, how you can set up your practice to get started, and how eRequests work with My Health Record.
The second half of the webinar focuses on managing and sharing advance care planning documents in My Health Record. One of the challenges of advance care planning is ensuring an up-to-date copy of relevant documents are accessible to the treating doctors and better linkage with My Health Record could be a solution.
This on-demand education activity is accredited for 2 points under the RACGP’s 2020–22 CPD triennium and is free to attend.
You can also access new information on our website:
Advancements in the management of chronic venous insufficiency
Date: Thursday 5 August 2021
Time: 7.00–8.00 pm AEST
This webinar will provide an overview of venous insufficiency and deep dive into venous anatomy and pathophysiology.
Attendees will hear about the symptoms of chronic venous insufficiency, how to diagnose it, and available management options.
Register on our website.
Mental health care in general practice
The RACGP Mental health care in general practice position statement has been updated to include information on the importance of integrating physical and mental health, telehealth and electronic health, and the wellbeing of the general practice team.
Read the updated position statement on the RACGP website.