The Royal Australian College of General Practitioners (RACGP) National Rural Faculty will tonight recognise a general practice registrar and medical student for their contribution to general practice in rural and remote Australia. The awards will be presented as part of ‘GP12’ the RACGP’s annual conference for general practice, currently taking place on the Gold Coast.
Dr Kathy Kirkpatrick, Chair of the RACGP National Rural Faculty, said both awards highlighted the crucial work of doctors within remote and rural communities.
“These accolades recognise the future of general practice in rural and regional Australia. It is wonderful to see the level of commitment and passion demonstrated by our award recipients to both their work and studies.”
RACGP National Rural Faculty Rural Registrar of the Year Award 2012
Dr Angus McDonell, Palm Island, Queensland, will tonight be awarded the RACGP National Rural Faculty Registrar of the Year Award 2012. The award is presented to a GP registrar who has demonstrated commitment to rural general practice and learning, services to rural patients, and education and services to the rural community.
Currently completing his Fellowship in Advanced Rural General Practice (FARGP) training, Dr McDonell’s medical career throughout his undergraduate and prevocational years has seen him work as an Intensive Care Paramedic, Senior Flight Nurse for the RFDS, and Aviation and Aeromedical Retrieval Doctor with the RAAF in the middle east. In addition to these roles, Dr McDonell has also spent time working in a rural refugee camp in Africa, for which he was awarded the Humanitarian Overseas Service Medal, and received an Australian Bravery Medal for a helicopter rescue in the Coral Sea off North Queensland during cyclone Justin.
Today, Dr McDonell holds the position of Medical Superintendent at Palm Island Hospital. Servicing a community of around 3,000 predominantly indigenous people, Dr McDonell regularly runs education sessions at the hospital, in addition to completing his daily tasks that focus on disease management and the health issues affecting the local community. Dr McDonell is heavily involved in health promotion with allied Indigenous health workers.
Congratulating Dr McDonell on receiving the RACGP National Rural Faculty Rural Registrar of the Year Award, Dr Kathy Kirkpatrick acknowledged Dr McDonell’s high level of commitment to rural general practice stating his achievements were “a shining example for other registrars”.
RACGP National Rural Faculty Medical Undergraduate Student Bursary 2012
Thomas Boosey, from Logan Hospital, Queensland, and member of HOPE4HEALTH rural student’s club at Griffith University, will tonight be presented with the RACGP National Rural Faculty Medical Undergraduate Student Bursary 2012.
This honour is awarded to a medical student who is a member of a rural students’ club at an Australian university who has completed the required essay on a topic chosen by the RACGP. This year’s essay topic focused on, ‘Rural general practice – looking back, looking forward’.
Thomas’ winning essay cited how the nature and expectations of rural healthcare have grown alongside new technologies, landmark policy-making and in line with the ageing Australian population.
Thomas identified that although the health status of regional, rural and Indigenous communities still significantly trail their metropolitan and non-Indigenous counterparts; the growth in the rural awareness programs and innovative incentives to attract healthcare professionals to ‘go rural’ and remain there, are going a long way in preparing rural communities for the challenges facing them in the future such as the impacts of an ageing workforce.
The winners of the RACGP National Rural Faculty General Practice Registrar of the Year Award 2012 and RACGP National Rural Faculty Medical Undergraduate Student Bursary 2012 have received full registration, travel and accommodation to attend the GP12 conference.