October 2019

New office for North Queensland

RACGP Queensland is committed to supporting general practice across the entire state. In line with this commitment, the RACGP Board has approved of the opening of an RACGP office in North Queensland. This move will enable the RACGP to better support GPs in Far North Queensland.

Queensland is physically the second largest and the most decentralised state in Australia and most GPs in North Queensland are members of the RACGP. This decision recognises these facts and reflects the RACGP’s commitment to general practice across the entire state.
 

New Deputy Chairs for RACGP Queensland

I would like to welcome Dr Catherine Hester and Dr Rod Willett to their roles as Deputy Chairs of the RACGP Queensland Council. I am looking forward to working closely with such an accomplished pair. I also thank the outgoing Deputy Chairs Dr Michael Clements and Dr Paula Conroy, who have worked tirelessly for the RACGP and have been a tremendous support to myself and the whole RACGP Queensland Council.
 

Fellowship ceremonies across the state

Over the past few months, RACGP Queensland hosted the Fellowship and Awards ceremonies in Brisbane and in Townsville, and the annual RACGP Queensland Members Meeting in Townsville. The Townsville ceremony was the first event held as a commitment to holding regular graduation ceremonies outside of Brisbane. The RACGP is currently the only specialist medical college to hold a regular Fellowship ceremony outside of the capital cities. The 2020 regional ceremony will be held in Cairns and the 2021 ceremony in Mackay.

I hope you’re having a great month!

Dr Bruce Willett
Chair, RACGP Queensland

Event	Date	Location
2020.1 Applied Knowledge Test (AKT) and Key Feature Problem (KFP) pre-exam workshop	Saturday 19 October 2019	Brisbane
2020.1 AKT and KFP pre-exam workshop	Sunday 20 October 2019	Brisbane
Part 3: Financial Health Check series	Saturday 2 November 2019	Brisbane
CPR workshop	Sunday 3 November 2019	Eatons Hill
Pre-OSCE standardisation meeting for examiners	Saturday 9 November 2019	Brisbane, Gold Coast and Townsville
2019.2 OSCE	Sunday 10 November 2019	Brisbane, Gold Coast and Townsville
CPR workshop	Thursday 14 November 2019	Brisbane
New Fellows Committee presents ‘GPs got talent’	Friday 22 November 2019	Brisbane
ALM: Managing older patients in general practice  BOOKED OUT	Saturday 30 November 2019	Brisbane
CPR workshop	Tuesday 3 December 2019	Brisbane
Part 4: Financial Health Check series	Thursday 5 December 2019	Brisbane
2020.1 AKT and KFP pre-exam workshop	Saturday 7 December 2019	Brisbane
2020.1 AKT and KFP pre-exam workshop	Sunday 8 December 2019	Brisbane

GPs need to maintain their skills to perform CPR procedures.

The RACGP recognises that CPR skills are used infrequently, and thus may diminish. Evidence suggests the most important determinant of survival from sudden cardiac arrest is the presence of a trained rescuer who is ready, willing, able and equipped to act.

Furthermore, basic life support skills are expected of healthcare providers as part of their duty to respond. It is, therefore, a requirement of the RACGP Quality Improvement and Continuing Professional Development (QI&CPD) Program that GPs maintain basic life support skills by completing a CPR course that meets the Australian Resuscitation Council (ARC) guidelines each triennium.

As the 2017–19 triennium is soon drawing to a close, RACGP Queensland is holding three CPR workshops before the end of the year (Brisbane and Eatons Hill) to assist members with fulfilling their training obligation. Register for your preferred session now.

Other approved life support workshops are available on the CPD activity list.

View more information.

GPs got talent

Friday 22 November 2019

The Queensland New Fellows Committee continues to be active, enthusiastically delivering outcomes for the clinical, professional and personal wellbeing of members.

This year's upcoming social event will break new ground with a celebration of life outside the clinic, and the talents and activities we undertake to invest in our own wellbeing. ‘GPs got talent’ is looking to be a creative expression across all the domains of the arts and wider activities.

It all kicks off at 6.30 pm at the RACGP Queensland office in Brisbane. 

Register now as places are limited.

Hot topics – Save the date

Our activities program will continue into 2020 with the first ‘Hot topics’ event to be held on Saturday 7 March 2020 at the Victoria Park Golf Club, Herston. Please save the date. Registrations will open in early November.
 

RACGP Practice Owners National Conference

We are very excited to see that the third annual RACGP Practice Owners National Conference will be held in Brisbane on Saturday and Sunday 16–17 May 2020. We encourage all members to take up this valuable opportunity.
 

Fellowship & Awards Ceremonies

I attended the first-ever RACGP Queensland Fellowship and Awards Ceremony held in North Queensland on 9 August in Townsville. It was a wonderful acknowledgment of the unique contribution to training that North Queensland makes and the value of having face-to-face events in regional areas. This event is planned to continue into the future with RACGP hosting a Fellowship and Awards Ceremony in Cairns in 2020 and Mackay in 2021.

New Fellows Committee

Paul Bryan represented the New Fellows Committee at the RACGP Queensland Fellowship and Awards Ceremony in Brisbane on 30 August. He reflected on the GP training journey, the significant life stages that occur during the journey and how the journey affects people.

I am looking forward to attending the national New Fellows Committee Chairs meeting at GP19 in Adelaide on Friday 25 October 2019. We will be discussing the professional development needs of new Fellows, improving the coordination of educational activities nationally, issues in medical education and training, including GP and trainee wellbeing. Important issues currently include falling financial benefits of general practice, increasing pressures and complexity of general practice and reduced funding for general practice training.

If you have suggestions for activities or to would like to discuss any matter relating to the Queensland New Fellows Committee, feel free to email me via qld@racgp.org.au

Dr Lisa Fraser
Chair, RACGP Queensland New Fellows Committee

2019.2 OSCE	Sunday 10 November 2019
2020.1 KFP	Friday 7 February 2020
2020.1 AKT	Wednesday 18 March 2020
2020.1 OSCE	Saturday 23 May 2020

If you are interested in becoming an examiner for the 2020.1 OSCE in May next year, email the RACGP Queensland Examinations team on qld.exam@racgp.org.au or call 07 3456 8944.

Alternatively, download and submit the application form.

Sepsis is highlighted as a global threat by the United Nations World Health Assembly in 2017. Rates of sepsis is increasing in Queensland, which makes it a major priority for Queensland Health. Clinical Excellence Queensland is working with key stakeholders to improve on early recognition of sepsis and early treatment of the potentially deadly condition.

The Queensland Statewide Sepsis Steering Committee and Paediatric Sepsis Working Group has developed an adult and a paediatric sepsis clinical pathway, and the Sepsis Breakthrough Collaborative will use the improvement methodology designed by the Institute for Healthcare Improvement to achieve improvement in sepsis management in Queensland.

View more information and resources.
 

The University of South Australia‘s (UniSA) Healthy Newborn Project is calling for healthcare clinicians (GPs, midwives, nurses, community workers) who provide antenatal care (with or without ultrasound) to participate in a survey that is investigating the use of antenatal ultrasound in rural/remote Australian communities.

After completing the survey, you will be placed in a random draw for a $1000 prize/scholarship.

The data collected will provide evidence that will inform governments of potential solutions to improve maternal and foetal wellbeing. Frontline healthcare professionals’ feedback is vital to this process.

Complete the survey.

This survey has ethics approval from UniSA Human Ethics Research Committee.

This project is endorsed by Australasian Society for Ultrasound in Medicine, International Society of Ultrasound in Obstetrics and Gynecology and funded by The Hospital Research Foundation.

If you have any queries, please email amber.bidner@unisa.edu.au




^Paid contribution

*Inclusion does not imply RACGP endorsement.
 

The Emerging Minds: National Workforce Centre for Child Mental Health provides resources for the health, community and social service sectors to support the workforce to improve child mental health.

We are pleased to announce that the free, online training module Supporting children’s resilience in general practice is available now!

This free course provides you with a psychosocial discussion tool that can be used when consulting patients as parents based on the understanding that parental, family, or social adversity can have a direct impact on children’s social and emotional wellbeing, and that GPs are well placed to hold preventive conversations with parents to buffer children from these impacts.

This three-hour course is accredited for six Category 2 QI&CPD points.