The Royal Australian College of General Practitioners (RACGP) is encouraged by the Australian Greens commitment to meeting the health needs of rural Australians as set out in their rural health election policy.
Dr Frank Jones, RACGP President, said targeted planning with more investment to secure a future resilient health workforce, supported by policies that properly distribute the GP workforce nationally, must be prioritised.
“Rural doctors around Australia can be reassured by the Greens support for a National Rural Health Plan, an idea that will no doubt also be welcomed by the one-third of Australians who live outside of a major city,” Dr Jones said.
A clear commitment from the Greens to oppose the freeze on indexation on the Medicare Benefits Schedule (MBS) also provides a welcome understanding of the financial challenges in rural areas, where geography and access are interdependent and impact upon health presentations.
“Rural Australians generally have lower average incomes and a trip to the doctor can mean financial pain. Due to distance, rural patients pay more to travel to the doctor, and they pay more for their medical supplies.
“Delivering healthcare is more expensive in rural and remote communities. Consequently bulk billing rates are lower in the bush and, as Medicare rebates fall even further behind industry costs, we know that out of pocket expenses will increase even further. Medicare rebates need to reflect the real costs of providing quality services,” Dr Jones said.
“We know part of the solution also lies in providing stronger alignment within the training system towards rural practice, placing more value on rural skills and experience overall – to provide the support needed to maintain general practice viability,” said Dr Sue Page, Deputy Chair, RACGP Rural.
“Recruitment, retention and training supports are all part of the evidence based argument the RACGP has been making to all sides of politics and, for our 7,353 RACGP Rural members working in regional, rural and remote Australia, it is great to receive this strong endorsement,” Dr Page said.
In addition, GPs play a crucial role in the provision of mental health services for all Australians but particularly so in regional and remote areas because GPs are often the only available health professional to help people with a mental health issue.
Increasing demands on public mental health facilities and scarcity of specialist psychiatrists in rural Australia, means that there is a clear need for increased resources, support and training in mental health for the rural GP workforce.
“We know rates of suicide are higher in rural areas, particularly in Aboriginal communities and increasingly so amongst Fly-In and Fly-Out workers,” Dr Jones said.
“Specialist services are so thin on the ground that RACGP recently released a dedicated education module specifically to assist rural GPs extend the scope of their mental health services.
“It is refreshing to see a party commit to major mental health spending tied to rural areas of underservice and not just invest in “centres of excellence” located in areas of population density,” Dr Jones said.