January 23, 2024
The Royal Australian College of General Practitioners (RACGP) has welcomed a Federal Government announcement of payments of up to $21,000 for some rural doctors.
The payments will support GPs and rural generalists providing emergency care in rural and remote communities with qualifications in mental health, obstetrics, surgery, anaesthetics or First Nations health.
From $4000-10,500 is available to GPs providing emergency care, based on location, rosters and skills.
RACGP president Dr Nicole Higgins said access to GPs was essential for people living in small towns and more remote settings.
“A well-staffed general practice is one of the essential elements of a small town. Without a GP, it’s hard to keep a community healthy and a town viable,” she said.
“Making the decision to move to a small community, and the increased expense of practice further from the city can push GPs to work closer to cities. Improving incentives for GPs and rural generalists to work in outer regional, rural, and remote communities can be the difference between a community thriving with a GP, or not.
“General practices in small towns and rural communities will need more support, particularly in cutting red tape for doctors who received their medical training overseas and improving support so GPs who join these communities are helped to settle and build lives there.
“The RACGP has committed to making that journey as easy as possible while maintaining Australia’s strong medical standards, and we urge the government to do the same.”
(Technically, the payments are open in what the Department of Health calls Modified Monash Model Areas 3-7. MMM defines whether a location is metropolitan, rural, remote or very remote. Kingaroy is an MMM Area 4 medium rural; while the rest of the South Burnett is MMM Area 5 small rural).
- External link: Incentives And Supports For GPs
