March 2024

March has been a month of celebrating women and allies of women.

This years’ theme for International Women’s Day was Count Her In: Invest in Women, Accelerate Progress. We marked the occasion in NSW&ACT with a celebration in our North Sydney Office where we heard from the inspiring Dr Kate Manderson. Amongst her many accolades, Dr Manderson is RACGP GP Supervisor of the Year 2023, Principal Medical Officer for the Australian Civil Aviation Safety Authority and an experienced Aerospace Medicine Specialist. Thank you to all who took part both in person and online to celebrate Dr Manderson and women in general practice across the globe.

March has also seen the progression of several of the College’s advocacy efforts onto their next stages. Early in March, I met with the Special Commission of Inquiry into Healthcare Funding team to discuss the RACGP’s submission. We have pushed, and will continue to push, for GP-led care to remain central to the government’s initiatives. In mid-March, our President, Deputy Chair, and I met again with NSW Ministers for Health and Finance to discuss payroll tax. I look forward to sharing the outcomes of that meeting with you very soon. The NSW&ACT Faculty Council have also been working hard to engage their local MPs in conversations regarding payroll tax. I met with my Local MP, Ms Eleni Petinos, to discuss the importance of general practice and the impact that payroll tax imposition could have on primary healthcare in her electorate. Don’t forget our payroll tax resources remain available for you to use and can be found on our website. I encourage you all to please book a time to speak with your local members about the impact that payroll tax would have on you as a GP, as a business and the impact that a fee increase may have on your patients.

It was wonderful to bring the NSW&ACT Faculty Council together for our first council meeting of the year. Feeling invigorated after our strategic planning meeting last month, we focused on our objectives of advocacy and member engagement. I am greatly looking forward to putting our plans into action later this month when I will be meeting with members in Newcastle and touring some of our local GP practices in the Hunter Valley. This month I am also looking forward to engaging with our stakeholders in the ACT as I visit Canberra for RACGPs GPs in Parliament.

Being so busy this month has served as a reminder of the importance of self-care and carving time out for oneself and our loved ones. As GPs, between patient loads and multiple, competing responsibilities, it can be difficult to prioritise ourselves. So, I would like to encourage you to take a moment for yourself this month.

Best wishes,
Bek
 

RACGP NSW&ACT is delighted to invite you to a meet and greet evening with the RACGP Board and members of the RACGP NSW&ACT Faculty Council.

Join us for a relaxed evening at QT Rooftop at QT Newcastle. This is an opportunity to meet members of the RACGP Board, ask questions and provide feedback as valued members.
Network with your peers over canapes and a selection of beverages.

Date: Wednesday 20 March 2024
Time: 6.30 – 8.30 pm
Venue: QT Rooftop at QT Newcastle, 185 Hunter Street, Newcastle, NSW 2300
Cost: Complimentary for members, registration is essential.
 
Register here

The Canberra Script Chief Health Officer (CHO) approval form has undergone recent improvements, which make it easier than ever to do the following:

• complete and submit a CHO approval application;
• monitor the status of your CHO approval applications;
• review CHO approvals issued to you or another prescriber at your practice; and
• renew or revoke a current CHO approval.

Due to recent system enhancements, the ACT Pharmaceutical Services team are now able to assess applications received via the Canberra Script portal with greater efficiency compared to other previously utilised submission processes. Significant reduction in processing time and the ability to receive your approval outcome immediately upon processing by Pharmaceutical Services, eliminates delays currently being experienced via fax and email.

Pharmaceutical Services encourages all prescribers to take this opportunity to familiarise themselves with the online Canberra Script application process.

For more information on what has changed, please see the October 2023 Release Notes.

The RACGP Foundation’s annual grants and award round is now open, with over $700,000 dollars in funding available this year thanks to the generous support of RACGP members and the Foundation’s partners.
 
This year, the Foundation is pleased to introduce several new grants this year, including the nib foundation / RACGP Foundation Healthcare Systems and Substantiality Grant ($250,000) and the RACGP Foundation GP Wellbeing Grant ($40,000).
 
Applications for most grants close 1 May 2024. Apply online today through the RACGP Foundation website and help shape the future of the profession for a healthier tomorrow.
 
For more information, please contact the Foundation & Research team at foundation@racpg.org.au.  

RACGP NSW&ACT congratulates the following GPs who attained Fellowship of the RACGP last month:
 

Dr Anitha Jandrajupalli Dr Nina Reid Dr Ryan Barton Dr Shamina Akter Dr Keerthigha N P Dr Maddison Kane Dr Fei Zhou Dr Ali Issaoui Dr Joseph Amen Dr Bin Li Dr Moosa Salesianfarash Dr Chomalen Sivaratnam Dr Mohammad Islam Dr Samuel Saltoon Dr Ben Ryall Dr Ngoc Le Dr David Van Ly Dr Georgia Heron Dr Kalungwana Magambo Dr Chaitali Thakkar Dr Pang Li Yeo Dr Anita Adhikari Dr Robert Spier Dr Alicia Perez Dr Christel Lee Dr Genevieve Burt Dr Ashurina Younadam Dr Mohammed Khurshedul Alam Dr Mary Girgis Dr Monica Fahmy Dr Mark Kazzi Dr Ketul Patel Dr Thet Htar San Dr Abeer Khan Dr Tanvir Rahman Dr Ruo Shi Cui Dr Seyed Ajjaward Dr Surenthirababu Veerasigamani Dr Pei Xia Jeanette Ng Dr Mirthula Balasuthanthira Dr Harriet Sandison Dr Bastian Joseph Dr Callan Coventry Dr Cedar Raw Dr Jessica Wang Dr Yu Gao Dr Christina Gray Dr Adam Chakos Dr Hope Bouwer Dr Jessica Weber Dr Hamish Graham Dr Courtney-Anne Blackhall Dr Alan Woo Dr Adelina Gendi Dr Animesh Shukla Dr Haider Yaqoob Dr Kristen Hamilton Dr Claire Francis Dr Ehssan Kdady Dr Isabel Watkins Dr Moustafa Daher Dr Madeleine Kelly Dr Lauren Stone Dr Lucas Booth Dr Zahraa Alsaaty Dr Annie Lu Dr Victor Grace Dr Nader Molavi Dr Anshdeep Dhaliwal Dr Sahida Siddika Dr Sarah Qazi Dr Alison Remynse Dr Borna Das Dr Farhana Alam Dr Rhea Gu Dr Ramy Awadalla Dr Jessica Cusumano Dr Rhys Bennett Dr Ashraf Fahim Dr Celia Feng Dr Steven Bell Dr Abbirami Linghanathan Dr Kristin Andrew Dr Shravya Pilli Dr Radhakrishnan Sreejith Dr Alinapreet Gulati Dr Winsome Chan Dr Emily O'Donnell Dr Yue Yin Dr Krithika Veeraragavan Dr Nicholin Wanigaratne Dr Zakariya Fares Dr You Sheng Chong Dr Mark Tattersall Dr Reza Ajam Dr Ghulam Abbas Panju Dr Jing Wern Chen Dr Suprity Chowdhury Dr Karman Chan Dr Maneli Abolfazli Dr Andrew Noussair Dr Javed Badyari Dr Natasha M Paul Dr Ji Su Kim Dr Yun Tang Dr Jackson Lam Dr Heather Shribman Dr Dana Moult Dr Huiyan Shen Dr Jacob Fenton Dr Joseph Taylor Dr Bronte Leonard Dr Gur Singh Dr Paing Myo Tun Dr Bahareh Shafaei Dr Rebecca Davison Dr Tahmina Ahmed Dr Benjamin Jacobs Dr Sahar Pakmehr

 
Congratulations on achieving Fellowship of the RACGP! We recognise the sacrifice and hard work that has gone into your general practice journey.
 
Transitioning from being a GP in training to an independent, practising GP is a major career-change (and life-changing) milestone. The Next Five Program extends support to New Fellows as they navigate their first few years of unsupervised practice.

The State Insurance Regulatory Authority (SIRA) in partnership with the NSW Agency for Clinical Innovation (ACI) have launched the Model of Care for the Management of Low Back Pain – Summary (the Summary Model)
 
The Summary Model and Patient factsheet (translated to 14 community languages) provides GPs with tools to provide early education for injured people about their low back pain and supports them to return to usual activities faster.
 
Please watch this short video presented by Dr Charlotte Hespe, with further details available here.
 
Learn more in the upcoming webinars on the Summary Model and the Personal Injury Schemes.

Help us spread the word to encourage the next generation to become a GP. 

Australia needs a strong general practice workforce. With your support, we can encourage the next generation to become a GP.   

If you know someone that would make a great GP or Rural Generalist, encourage them to apply today. 

Applications for the 2025 Australian General Practice Training Program are currently open and close on Monday 15 April 2024.   

Useful resources can be found on our website and our YouTube channel.  

We’re excited to help the next generation of doctors join the profession and are here to help. Please encourage your colleagues to contact us on becomeagp@racgp.org.au or 1800 472 247 if they require any assistance.   

Close the Gap Day is recognised on the third Thursday of March, encouraging people to take meaningful action towards health equity for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples. Each year, the Close the Gap Campaign – a community-led campaign for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander health equity – develops a report profiling examples of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander excellence, innovation, and leadership from all corners of Australia.
 
To recognise the day this year, the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander health team is hosting a webinar on Monday, 25 March (7:00pm-8:00pm AEDT). During this discussion, we’ll learn more about the Campaign, what we’re doing at the RACGP to progress health equity and unpack this year’s theme: Voyage to Voice, Treaty, Truth and Beyond.

To get involved, register here

A key library resource, the Murtagh Collection, will soon only be available as part of a new more comprehensive resource, AccessWorldMed which will have the Murtagh etexts and case materials at its core but will also include procedural videos, further medical texts, flashcards, Q&As and more.  

The Library is running a trial of AccessMedWorld between 14 and 29 March to help us decide whether to subscribe to this much expanded resource for member access. 

If you would like to help us evaluate this resource, please go to the library’s trials page for details and trial access (RACGP web login required).

Please note that there will be a scheduled IT infrastructure upgrade occurring on Saturday 16 March from 8.00 AM - 6 PM. During the maintenance window the TMS, website, MyCPD and other services may be impacted. If you require urgent assistance during this time, please contact the IT Service Desk on 03 8699 0456.

NSW is committed to eliminating hepatitis C as a public health concern by 2028. General practitioners play a key role identifying and testing patients at risk of and treating patients with hepatitis C.
 
Help identifying and managing patients with hepatitis C is available here:

• Decision Making in Hepatitis C
• Australian recommendations for the management of hepatitis C
• REACH C Online prescribing support

 
RACGP and NSW Health are delivering online hepatitis C training which includes how to use these tools.
 
See the RACGP website to stay up to date with upcoming training sessions.

A new podcast from NSW Health explores how GPs can use the science of obesity to identify and reduce weight stigma and improve patient outcomes.
 
Join experts Dr Terri-Lynne South and Dr Miriam Grotowski in an insightful conversation with Andrew Wilson, an advocate from the Weight Issues Network with lived experience of obesity. Together they share professional and personal insights and offer strategies for GPs to enhance their practice using the science of obesity to reframe conversations with patients.
 
GPs are also encouraged to explore the accompanying eLearning module on the Obesity Collective website.
 
Listen now | Browse podcasts