Rural Health

For many years, the College has been concerned about the maldistribution of physicians and paediatricians in Australia and a number of initiatives at central and regional level have sought to address this problem.

The Rural Taskforce Expert Advisory Group consists of rural physicians and paediatricians from around Australia. It provides advice various to internal and external stakeholders on issues central to the provision of physician and paediatrician services in rural and remote Australia. Specific areas of current focus are:

• Enhancements to aspects of basic and advanced rural training, including rural secondment policies, the quality and site of training, inclusion of procedural skills and interaction with rural clinical schools and university departments of rural health;
• The continuing professional development needs of rural physicians and paediatricians;
• The College's rural locum program;
• Working with the College's Workforce portfolio in the areas of recruitment and retention of rural specialists

Please contact the Policy and Advocacy Unit for further information: policy@racp.edu.au

Submissions

• Consultation on Draft Specification for Rural Hospital Medicine Training, September 2009 (PDF 

Projects and Programs

• Physician and Paediatrician Locum Register
• RASTS (Rural Advanced Specialist Trainee Support) Project
• Support Scheme for Rural Specialists (SSRS)
• Rural Paediatricians Audit Project

Related Sites

NSW Rural Doctors Network: http://www.nswrdn.com.au/site/index.cfm
Rural Doctors Association of Australia: http://www.rdaa.com.au/default.cfm
Rural Doctors Association of Victoria: http://www.rdav.com.au/
Rural Doctors Association of NSW: http://www.rdansw.com.au/
Rural Doctors Association of Queensland: http://www.rdaq.com.au/main.asp?NodeID=259
Rural Doctors Association of South Australia: http://www.rdasa.com.au/
Rural Doctors Association of Western Australia: http://www.rdaa.com.au/default.cfm
Rural Doctors Association of Northern Territory: http://www.rdaa.com.au/default.cfm
Rural Doctors Association of Tasmania: http://www.rdaa.com.au/default.cfm