AFOEM eBulletin - 16 December 2022
This year is nearly at the end, but the pace of activity, and changes, continue. Many of you may already be aware that the RACP Board has announced that a new CEO is being sought. Both Professor Malcolm Sim AM and I have appreciated the relationship AFOEM has developed with Peter McIntyre, the current CEO and we wish him all the best for his future. In other news, the annual RACP Congress that was to be held in May in Brisbane has been postponed but planning for the AFOEM ATM continues and details will be provided when decisions have been made.
The Faculty Presidents have been invited to discuss the Future of the Faculties with the Board on 16 December. The Faculty Presidents are seeking increased recognition and resourcing for non-hospital based training, a representative from each Faculty Education Committee to be included on the College Education Committee, as well as increased communication and consultation on important issues.
Demands continue to be received for advice from our Policy and Advocacy Committee. The Lead Fellows for the Accelerated Silicosis Group have provided feedback on the draft legislation received from the Australian Department of Health and Aged Care to support the National Occupational Respiratory Disease Registry. The draft legislation appears generally sound, but amendment of a few sections has been recommended to provide the framework essential to support the establishment of the registry. User trials of the registry revealed that significant changes are required to improve its functionality and gain the support of those who will be required to submit reports of occupational lung diseases. It is evident from the user trials that continued consultation and discussion will be required with staff in the Department of Health and Aged Care for the registry to evolve into more than a case reporting system.
Many of our members have contributed comments on the recently released consultation paper on The Role and Functions of an Australian Centre for Disease Control. AFOEM has provided input into the RACP response. There is minimal mention of occupational disease in the consultation paper, and several of our Fellows have assisted ANZSOM to develop an excellent submission outlining the importance of including occupational diseases in planning an Australian CDC.
At the AFOEM Council on 15 November, a decision was made to re-establish the position of Lead Fellow for Environmental Medicine. The main purpose of the position is to broaden the understanding on the environmental aspect of our specialty, for both internal and external stakeholders. An Expression of Interest (EOI) has now been posted on the ROC and details the key responsibilities.
As this is my final post of the year, I would like to acknowledge the outstanding support AFOEM has received from our exceptional Executive Officer, LynFay Shapiro; our Senior Policy Officer, Kathryn Powell; the Manager Faculties, Jo Goldrick; and the Manager of Policy and Advocacy, Justine Watkins. These staff members have worked tirelessly throughout the year and dealt with often unrealistic and unreasonable workloads and timeframes without complaint. Our members are most appreciative of their efforts. I also extend my thanks to all our members who have willingly and unselfishly contributed to College committees and those who have acted as supervisors to our trainees.
Finally, I wish you all a very merry Christmas and a happy and rewarding New Year. I hope that you will all find time to rest and recuperate from what I am aware has been a frenetic year for many of you.
Dr Warren Harrex
AFOEM President
Nominate a colleague to recognise their outstanding contributions to the Faculty in the area of education, training and assessment. The closing date for nominations for the Education Commitment Award has been extended to Tuesday, 31 January 2023.
Visit the website for more details.
ANZSOM’s Annual Scientific Meeting will be held in Canberra from Sunday, 22 to Wednesday, 25 October 2023. Please save the date. We are pleased to announce that AFOEM will once again be the Scientific Program Partner. Discount bookings for accommodation will open in the new year, so stay tuned.
2023 MyCPD Framework
In 2023, the Medical Board of Australia and the Medical Council of New Zealand will strengthen recertification requirements for physicians. The College has drawn together core requirements of both regulators to create the 2023 MyCPD Framework.
You can access the interactive handbook and find other useful documents, templates and videos, such as the 2023 MyCPD Framework Explained webinar recording and the Decoding CPD: Categories 2 and 3 video series via MyCPD.
For more information, visit the Continuing Professional Development webpage or contact us. We support you to comply with your CPD requirements, whatever your individual circumstances may be.
My RACP. MyCPD Home
From 1 January 2023, all Australian medical practitioners will need a CPD Home.
Your RACP Fellowship means you already belong to a quality CPD Home. If you are already participating in our MyCPD program, you don’t need to do anything. If you are not using our MyCPD program, you can email the CPD team to obtain free access as part of your RACP membership.
You have never stopped learning. We’re here to make sure that continues. My RACP. MyCPD Home.
The College’s COVID-19 Expert Reference Group is pleased to advise that the RACP COVID-19 Living Narrative has been updated to reflect the College’s COVID-19 activity up until November 2022. The updated document can be viewed on the College website here.
From 1 December 2022, prescribers can submit certain Authority Required ‘Written’ (written) PBS medicines on the schedule using the Online PBS Authorities system (the system). This means you will no longer need to submit authority applications, prescriptions, and test results for these medicines. Instead, you will be able to use the system to apply for authority approval and provide evidence digitally.
Find out more.
My Work Profile captures the professional activities of physicians across a range of roles and geographical sites. By completing your My Work Profile you help us support advocacy activities on behalf of our members and inform future workforce planning. In recognition of your time, if you complete your profile between November and February, you will go into a draw to win a $300 Prezzee gift card. We have three gift cards to give away, with one winner chosen at random at the end of each month.
Complete your profile or find out more.
Mentor Match is an innovative program to help you connect with other members, based on your mentoring preferences and professional goals. Mentors provide guidance and support to mentees, while mentees are given the opportunity to develop personally and professionally and receive constructive feedback to improve performance and outcomes. Find your perfect match.
IMJ On-Air – Ep3: Making sense of HACs
Ep3: Making sense of HACs
Clinical complications suffered by patients during hospital stays are assumed to be preventable and to provide some metric of quality of care. Dr Graeme Duke and his colleagues at the Eastern Health Intensive Care Research have sought to validate the clinical significance of hospital-acquired complications (HACs) identified within their service. In this podcast, Dr Duke and IMJ editor Professor Ian Scott discuss their research and its implications for the national hospital-acquired complications program.
Guests
- Dr Graeme Duke FCICM, FANZCA (Eastern Health Intensive Care Services)
- Prof Ian Scott FRACP (University of Queensland, Princess Alexandra Hospital)
References
Graeme J Duke et al. Clinical evaluation of the national hospital-acquired complication programme Internal Medicine Journal 2021; 52(11); 1910-1916
Pomegranate Health Podcast – Ep89: What we know about long COVID
Ep89: What we know about long COVID
ADAPT is a prospective cohort study that has been following up COVID-19 patients since the earliest days of the pandemic. It has allowed researchers to track the emergence of long COVID, a syndrome that includes symptoms such as ongoing breathlessness, fatigue, chest tightness and "brain fog".
Over the course of the study, participants have contributed blood cells, cardiac and brain MRIs, tests of respiratory function and more. The research has uncovered molecular and functional correlates that are helping to explain long COVID. Meanwhile, clinicians at the St Vincents’ Hospital, Sydney long COVID clinic are successfully applying rehabilitation strategies drawn from the treatments of chronic pain and other functional disorders.
Guests
- Professor Gail Matthews MRCP FRACP (Head of Infectious Diseases, St Vincent's Hospital, Sydney; Kirby Institute)
- Dr David Darley FRACP (St Vincent’s Hospital, Sydney)
- Professor Steven Faux FRACGP FAFRM FFPMANZCA (Director Rehabilitation and Pain Medicine, Vincent’s Hospital, Sydney)
- Professor Bruce Brew AM FRACP FAAN (Director of the Peter Duncan Neurosciences Research Unit, St Vincent's Hospital Sydney)
Please visit the Pomegranate Health web page for a transcript and supporting references. To claim learning credits login to MyCPD at this link, review the prefilled activity details then click save. Subscribe to new episode email alerts or search for ‘Pomegranate Health’ in Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Castbox, or any podcasting app.
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AFOEM contact details
AFOEM Faculty enquiries (including Council and committees):
LynFay Shapiro
AFOEM Executive Officer
Email: afoem@racp.edu.au
AFOEM Education and Training enquiries:
Education Officer
Phone: +61 2 8247 6268
Email: occenvmed@racp.edu.au
AFOEM Examination enquiries:
Examination Coordinator, Assessment Services
Email: faculty.examinations@racp.edu.au
AFOEM training site accreditation inquiries:
Site Accreditation Unit
Email: accreditation@racp.edu.au
AFOEM CPD enquiries:
Email: mycpd@racp.edu.au