General Practice: A New Image For A New Era, Australia

Main Category: Medical Students / Training
Also Included In: Primary Care / General Practice
Article Date: 18 Jun 2008 - 5:00 PDT

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More medical graduates must choose general practice as a career to ensure the ongoing quality of primary healthcare in Australia, the Australian Medical Students' Association (AMSA) said today.

AMSA President Michael Bonning said although medical graduate numbers will double by 2012, we will not see a concomitant increase in the number of general practice trainees unless we work to encourage more graduates down this pathway.

"To ensure adequate numbers of general practitioners to meet the growth and health needs of the Australian population, we must make general practice an attractive and enticing career choice for medical graduates," Mr Bonning said.

"As students we are often asked about our career intentions when we finish medical school, 'Are you going to specialize or just be a GP?'. This question, which asserts that general practice is somehow inferior to other medical specialties, and indeed, not even a specialty, may act as a deterrent to some graduates choosing a career in general practice.

"We must correct this false perception and in doing so, encourage more graduates into a career in general practice. General practice is a dynamic and challenging specialty that is paramount to the success of primary care in Australia.

An emphasis on general practice with exposure to structured programs in the undergraduate years is also essential.

The General Practice Students' Network (GPSN), a joint venture of AMSA and the General Practice Registrars' Australia (GPRA) was formed a year ago, to promote general practice as a specialty among medical students.

GPSN awards scholarships to students with an interest in general practice and acknowledges general practitioners for excellence in general practice education.

"The future of primary healthcare in Australia relies upon a robust general practice workforce.

"We must work to improve the image of general practice as a step to guarantee this workforce for the future," Mr Bonning said.

Australian Medical Students' Association