Deputy Chairs report – January 2023

We hope everyone had a safe and happy holiday season with your loved ones. Welcome to 2023 and to a new CPD triennium! As of 1 January 2023, the new Medical Board of Australia requirements involve logging 50 hours of CPD and completing a professional development plan every year, and refreshing your skills with one CPR course in the triennium. The RACGP has designed some tools to help you easily navigate and fulfill your requirements, including recording activities that you’re already doing in your day-to-day life as a GP.

More changes are approaching as the RACGP prepares to deliver the Australian General Practice Training Program from 1 February 2023. This will give general practice training a nationally consistent approach, similar to other medical specialties. Our new model is also structured to ensure GPs in training are located where they’re most needed across the nation, meeting the needs of the Australian public. Visit our general practice training page for more information.

On the advocacy front, our faculty has partnered with AMA NSW to support a postcard campaign asking the Minister for Emergency Services and Resilience Minister for Flood Recovery to provide grant funding to healthcare providers in Lismore. Despite previous efforts, these healthcare providers still haven’t received adequate resources to recover and continue providing essential services to their communities.

In more advocacy news, we know many of you are concerned about the implications of a recent NSW payroll tax ruling. The college is working on getting a favourable outcome for general practice at both the national and state/territory levels. We're also expecting the Strengthening Medicare Task Force report, as well as the Medicare Integrity Report to provide their findings within the next month or two. We also have the NSW state election at the end of March, so you can expect to see a lot of RACGP representation and advocacy between now and then.

RACGP Rural and RACGP NSW&ACT are holding a member meet-up on 24 February 2023 in Tamworth. Mingle with RACGP Rural council members and faculty staff over drinks and nibbles while catching up with your colleagues.

We’re pleased to announce the RACGP NSW&ACT New Fellows Committee will hold its fifth Wellbeing Weekend in Port Macquarie this year. Although we were initially hoping to hold the weekend in March, the new May program has been developed with a focus on self-care, balance and wellbeing in your careers. See below for more information.

Finally, we’d like to wish good luck to all the candidates across NSW and the ACT completing their Applied Knowledge Test and Key Feature Problem exams next month.

Dr Rebekah Hoffman and Dr Michael Wright
Deputy Chairs