July 2019

Welcome to the July edition of our newsletter. This month, I am stepping in for our Chair, Dr Zakaria Baig.
 

RACGP awards

Congratulations to the RACGP SA&NT award winners (more details on the winners below). It is great to see so many nominations for South Australia and Northern Territory. Best of luck to all the state winners for the national awards, which will be announced at GP19.
 

CrazySocks4Docs launch

On 5 June, I attended the South Australian CrazySocks4Docs launch breakfast at the Adelaide Convention Centre. Dr Geoff Toogood, the founder of CrazySocks4Docs, Professor Michael Baigent, Professor Paul Ward and Dr Jill Benson discussed doctors’ mental health, burnout and future research in this area. It was fantastic to see the number of doctors attending the launch, including several RACGP SA&NT Council members. Many doctors wore crazy socks to work on Friday 7 June and shared pictures on social media to raise awareness of the mental health of medical practitioners.
 

Fellowship and Awards Ceremonies

The RACGP SA&NT Fellowship ceremonies are fast approaching, with the SA Fellowship ceremony to be held on Saturday 24 August 2019, and the NT ceremony to be held on Saturday 7 September 2019. I encourage all members to attend and congratulate the new Fellows on their achievement.
 

GP19

As you may now be aware, GP19 will be held at the Adelaide Convention Centre on Thursday to Saturday 24–26 October 2019. Registration is now open and the early bird rate ends on Thursday 1 August 2019. Members attending GP19 will also have the chance to participate in clinical sessions, the RACGP Annual General Meeting and Convocation. Be on the lookout for new approaches to the tabling of convocation items – we want your ideas.
 

Dr Emma Knott
RACGP SA&NT Deputy Chair

Tuesday 23 July 2019

This session aims to provide a greater understanding of common ears, nose and throat issues that are presented in daily general practice.

Education topics

• Management of chronic rhinosinusitis (CRS)
• Paediatric recurrent ear infection and tonsillitis
• Complications of otitis media
• Hoarse voice
• Approach to management of dysphonia
• Epistaxis management

If you have any queries, please call Anjelica Nowak on 08 8267 8312 or email anjelica.nowak@racgp.org.au

Saturday 10 August 2019

This interactive, one-day workshop will provide you with the skills to increase your confidence in diagnosing, treating and referring a range of skin cancers and non-surgical modalities for field change frequently seen in general practice. Practical sessions will cover procedural skills in suturing and dermoscopy.
 
Facilitated by Sonic Healthcare.
 
If you have any queries, please call Jessica Fry on 08 8267 8325 or email jessica.fry@racgp.org.au
 
Register now.

RACGP SA&NT is pleased to advise that registrations are now open for the SA&NT Fellowship and Awards Ceremonies for 2019.
 
In the past, the national academic ceremony was held in conjunction with the RACGP annual conference. This year, the Fellowship and Awards ceremonies will only be held by state faculties. Members are welcome to celebrate their attainment of Fellowship at any state faculty ceremony of their choice.
 
You are invited to attend a ceremony in SA or NT or in another state at a time that is most convenient for you.
 
South Australia
Saturday 24 August 2019
Adelaide Town Hall
For further information, please contact Elaine Dalby.
 
Northern Territory
Saturday 7 September 2019
Hilton Darwin
For further information, please contact Jessica Fry.

RACGP SA&NT is pleased to announce the winners for the 2019 faculty awards.

SA&NT General Practitioner of the Year – Dr David Lam

Dr Lam is a young and passionate GP, based in Port Lincoln. He was the first-ever medical student to complete a clinical placement in Port Lincoln, who then returned to the region as a general practice registrar and then remained to serve the community as a GP Fellow.

He pursues a variety of specialist interests, including child and adolescent health, Aboriginal health, mental health, drug and alcohol issues, chronic disease management and emergency medicine. He is creative in the use of information technology and online multimedia for health promotion and patient education, and is actively involved in registrar supervision and teaching, mentoring and support.

SA&NT General Practice Supervisor of the Year – Dr Raphael Torome

Dr Torome practices at the Barmera Medical Clinic and has been a supervisor in the general practice training program since 2008. He is a supportive, knowledgeable and highly respected mentor and supervisor. Registrars working under Dr Torome’s supervision are encouraged to believe in their abilities and new skills are taught with patience and easy-to-understand clinical reasoning. His commitment to training and mentoring has been described as ‘second to none’.

SA&NT General Practice Registrar of the Year – Dr Rebecca Mott-Lake

Dr Mott-Lake is commended for her commitment and excellent work ethic. She is regarded highly by patients and by the staff in the practice where she works. She is committed to furthering her education and providing a high level of care to her local community.

SA&NT General Practice of the Year – Hawkins Medical Clinic

Hawkins Medical Clinic, a 24-hour general practice service located in Mount Gambier, has been in operation for almost 70 years. They are the largest general practice outside of metropolitan Adelaide, currently employing 27 GPs. The practice aims to provide a high quality of care to the local community. It also has a strong commitment to training at all levels and is the only general practice in the south-east of South Australia that hosts registrars, interns and medical students.

We are very proud that three RACGP SA&NT members were recognised in the 2019 Queen’s Birthday Honours list.

Members (AM) in the General Division of the Order of Australia

• Dr John Litt – For significant service to preventive medicine as an influenza specialist, and as a GP.
• Emeritus Professor Anthony Radford – For significant service to medicine, to medical education, and to global health.

Medal (OAM) of the Order of Australia in the General Division

• Dr Samuel Heard – For service to medicine

Congratulations to all.

This month, we place the spotlight on Dr Jaiveer Krishnan, member of the RACGP SA&NT Council.

Dr Krishnan works at the Europa Clinic in Salisbury Downs. He has particular interests in diabetes, obesity, metabolic and cardiovascular medicine, mental health and antenatal care. He enjoys the fact that general practice allows him to offer preventive care to his patients and a variety of consultations; however, he feels that acting as a gatekeeper with limited access to the health system poses some challenges.

For anybody new to general practice, Dr Krishnan wants to share his sense of satisfaction that results from addressing patient concerns. ‘We have a great opportunity to influence one’s health status. We have to make use of the opportunity and promote community health,’ says Dr Krishnan.

On behalf of RACGP SA&NT, we thank Dr Krishnan for sharing his perspectives with us.

A list of upcoming Fellowship of the Royal Australian College of General Practitioners (FRACGP) exam-related events and key dates is available below. Up-to-date listings of the FRACGP exams are also available.

The GP19 Planning Committee has finalised the clinical program and it includes more clinical topics than ever before.
 
Topics of interest

• Dermatology
• Diabetes
• Weight management
• Sexual health
• GP health
• and more.

The program also includes sessions designed and delivered by other medical bodies, who have a reliance on general practice, to deliver clinical updates. Some of these session topics in the GP19 program include:
 

• Pathology update for GPs
• Aged care and dementia
• Gastroenterology update, including irritable bowel syndrome  and liver function testing
• Men’s health update
• Pain management

 View the conference program to find out which topics are relevant to you.
 
View program  |  Register now

People with egg allergy can be safely vaccinated with influenza vaccines. People with an anaphylaxis egg allergy can be vaccinated with the full age-appropriate dose in any medical facility by staff experienced in recognising and treating anaphylaxis.
 
There are only two absolute contraindications to the influenza vaccine (which are applicable to all vaccines):

• Anaphylaxis following a previous dose of the relevant vaccine.
• Anaphylaxis following any component of the relevant vaccine.

Precautions also apply for influenza vaccine in persons with a history of Guillain–Barre syndrome.
 
View the online Australian immunisation handbook for more details.
 
For more information on communicable diseases, visit the Communicable Disease Control Branch website or call 1300 232 272.

All medical practitioners across the Northern Territory are invited to help guide the future Doctors’ Health program in the region.
 
The current program offers:

• training and education in doctors’ health to grow the network of special interest GPs in the Northern Territory
• 24/7 confidential advisory service
• telemedicine consultations with an experienced GP
• broad education about self-care and caring for colleagues.

The future program now needs input from the broader profession. Dr Roger Sexton, Medical Director at Doctors’ Health SA&NT, encourages all doctors to participate in the short, anonymous survey.

Please complete the survey. We appreciate you feedback.

The survey will close at midnight on Friday 26 July 2019.

If you have any queries, please call Kiara Cannizzaro on 08 8232 1250 or email kiara.cannizzaro@doctorshealthsa.com.au

Mission Australia offers an outreach drug and alcohol counselling service in the Adelaide metro region for young people aged 12–24 years.

This free, confidential and voluntary program focuses on building relationships with young people and providing an understanding of drug and alcohol use in the context of each individual’s life. The program has maintained clinical accreditation through the Australian Council on Healthcare Standards and the Australian Service Excellence Standards since 2016. 
 
For additional information, call 08 8417 8100, email outreachcdas@missionaustralia.com.au or visit the Mission Australia office at 35 Richard Street, Hindmarsh SA.
 
*Paid contribution