’He who once begins to tell falsehoods is obliged to tell others to make them appear true …’
— ‘The Monkey and the Dolphin,’ Aesop
A lot of falsehoods have been circulating around general practice lately. And many of those falsehoods are followed by bigger statements to assert the veracity of the original.
One is that general practice is responsible for access blockage in emergency departments, often followed by something like, ‘Fix the “GP problem” and fix the whole system.’
Nothing could be further from the truth. RACGP President Karen Price, all Faculty Chairs and I know that. Fantastically, the Australasian College for Emergency Medicine (ACEM) is also saying it to anyone who’ll listen.
Some in the Victorian Department of Health (DoH) understand our sector and know the realities of our fragmented, federated health system. Those champions work alongside us to call for innovation in system reform.
For others, the penny is yet to drop. RACGP Victoria, Karen and the ACEM have agreed to tackle this falsehood as a partnership. ACEM Victoria Chair Mya Cubitt told me, ‘My heart bleeds for GPs, who bear the brunt of this. It’s not [emergency departments] (and not Ambulance Victoria) that need more funding – it’s general practice.’ Together, we’ll steer this narrative back towards truthfulness.
We’ve been busy in other arenas this month, too:
- Dr Michael Aufgang advocated for a simpler, fairer parking permit-renewal system, removing demands on GP time.
- RACGP Victoria Council farewelled Dr Imran Marzook with thanks, and welcomed incoming New Fellows representative Dr Adhil Aziz.
- Advocacy via Victorian Federal MPs has begun – if you’d like to help us approach these MPs, please email Kon. Let’s mobilise, friends!
Finally, if you’d like to engage with RACGP Victoria about any matter, you’re invited to Book a Chat with Vic Fac! Every Thursday, Kon and I will be available to meet in person or over Zoom. Email Kon or myself to book.