The President's Message – 5 July 2024
Hello and kia ora everyone. I would like to acknowledge the Awabakal and Worimi peoples as the traditional owners and custodians of the lands I’m writing to you from. I extend my respect to all Aboriginal, Torres Strait Islander, and Māori people. Together we restate our shared commitment to advancing Aboriginal, Torres Strait Islander and Māori health and education as core business of the RACP.
This is a big year for changes in Education, Learning and Assessment. We’re introducing our new Training Management Platform to support the go-live of our new Basic and Advanced Training curricula early next year. It will look at the future shape of examinations and how we govern education, learning and assessment.
As part of profiling our members in these messages, I want to introduce you to a highly experienced educationist, clinician and RACP Fellow who is overseeing all these major initiatives. Professor Inam Haq FRCP FRACP is our Executive General Manager of Education, Learning and Assessment.
Inam sits on the Senior Leadership Team of the College, who run The RACP’s day-to-day operations. I recently spoke with him and asked about his background, and these exciting new projects. If you have any questions for Professor Haq about these projects, or want to get involved, you can email him.
Te Whanganui a Tara Wellington visit
I was also recently in Te Whanganui a Tara Wellington with our Interim CEO, Steffen Faurby, for Council of Medical Colleges and Medical Council of New Zealand workshops.
The Council of Medical Colleges Day was all about cultural safety and looked at the future direction of Council of Medical Colleges and Te Ora | Māori medical practitioners.
These initiatives continue building cultural competency alongside cultural safety. They have an emphasis on how cultural competency is implemented, especially with changes to CPD, and take into account Overseas Trained Physicians and international medical graduates.
The Medical Council of New Zealand day focused on international medical graduates, cultural safety, and workforce, including a panel discussion with senior staff from Te Whatu Ora | Health New Zealand.
It was also a great opportunity to meet the team in the Wellington office, who were fantastic hosts – kia ora team.
Pictured (left to right): Steffen Faurby, Interim CEO; Sally Marett, SEO, Division, Faculty and Chapters Aotearoa New Zealand; Allan Carson, Education Officer, Advanced Training Aotearoa New Zealand; Jared Woodroofe, Senior Executive Officer, Advanced Training Aotearoa New Zealand; Professor Jennifer Martin, RACP President; Elizabeth Brown, Executive Officer, Advanced Training, Aotearoa New Zealand; Helena Keating, Education Officer, Advanced Training, Aotearoa New Zealand; Kate Boyle, Education Officer, Basic Training Aotearoa New Zealand; Photo taken by Simon Hodge, Aotearoa New Zealand Manager.
Kind regards,
Professor Jennifer Martin
RACP President
Richard Alan Smallwood was a leader in clinical practice, medical research, education and administration, who made outstanding contributions to the broad and long-term issues of healthcare in Australia. He passed away on 1 June 2024.
His dedication earned him national recognition, named an Officer of the Order of Australia (1997) for service to medicine, particularly in the field of gastroenterology, to research, through the National Health and Medical Research Council, and to education. He was awarded the Centenary Medal in 2001 for "service to public health especially as the Chief Medical Officer" and in 2013, the Sir William Upjohn Medal, which recognises distinguished service to medicine in Australia.
Read more about his extraordinary life on the College Roll.
A once in five-year chance to recognise global eminence in medicine
The RACP is proud to award the Neil Hamilton Fairley Medal once every five years to an individual who has made outstanding contributions to the field of medicine.
The Award honours the internationally renowned work of esteemed Australian physician, Brigadier Sir Neil Hamilton Fairley KBE CStJ FRACP FRCP FRCPE FRS. Sir Neil Hamilton Fairley is remembered as a visionary whose knowledge and persistence led to numerous vital contributions in medicine.
Nominees do not need to be members of the RACP, but those who nominate must be RACP Fellows. Nominations are open until Wednesday, 31 July 2024.
Find out more I Reference document
Support your peers and be inspired by a range of research projects
Don’t miss the opportunity to hear some emerging RACP researchers as they present at the Trainee Research Awards Symposium 2024. All presenters have been selected as their regional representatives from competitive events held across Australia and Aotearoa New Zealand in 2023.
The presenters will be joined by guest speaker, Director of Community Paediatrics and Professor of Community Paediatrics at Sydney University, Professor Susan Woolfenden, and members of the College Grants Advisory Committee. The two best Trainee Research Awards presenters on the day will each receive an additional prize.
The Symposium will be held in the Council Room of the historic RACP building at 145 Macquarie Street, Sydney. This is a free hybrid event, which will be held on Friday, 26 July from 2.30pm to 6pm.
This is a great networking opportunity for trainees, Fellows, and others in the industry. Trainees considering participating in this year's Trainee Research Awards can also feel inspired and gain insight to the range of research that can be presented. The Symposium is open to RACP members as well as non-members.
Register now l Read the program
Now is the time to nominate a colleague who deserves being recognised for their outstanding contributions and achievements.
Nominations are being called for these prestigious College Awards:
The College has recommended that the Department of Health and Aged Care reinstate phone items for subsequent specialist MBS consultations and continue to permit video consultations for initial specialist consultations. This is following the College's extensive telehealth advocacy, most recently to the MBS Review Advisory Committee’s Telehealth Post-Implementation Review.
The recommended principles also acknowledge a long-standing College position; different modalities (face-to-face, phone or video), all have important uses that depend on the specific circumstances of the patient and practitioner. The principles better reflect the role of telehealth in our healthcare landscape and support greater health equity and improved patient access.
This is a considerable win for the College’s significant telehealth advocacy since 2020. The next step is to encourage implementation of the recommendations. We thank all the members who have aided our advocacy efforts in this key space.
Did you complete an RACP Advanced, Faculty or Chapter Training program between 1 April 2022 and 31 May 2023? If you did, you are invited to complete this year’s New Fellow Survey to share your experience as an early career physician.
This 15-minute, anonymous online survey will ask you how your RACP training program has prepared you for Fellowship. Feedback will help us provide tailored resources and support for members and make evidence-informed improvements to our training programs. The New Fellow Survey is conducted annually and is open until Sunday, 14 July 2024 at 11.59pm AEST.
We thank those who have contributed this year, in past surveys and encourage all eligible early career physicians to participate this year. For more information about the survey, including confidentiality and how the data will be reported, please visit the New Fellow Survey page on the RACP website.
Take survey
Are you a first year Advanced Trainee or a supervisor of a first year Advanced Trainee in one of the following programs?
- cardiology (adult medicine)
- paediatric cardiology
- gastroenterology
- geriatric medicine
- nephrology
- rehabilitation medicine (adult medicine).
You are invited to share your experience with the first few months of the new curriculum by completing this short, anonymous survey. The Advanced Training Evaluation Survey is open until Wednesday, 31 July 2024.
Advanced Trainee survey l Supervisor survey
Do you have a project idea aimed at supporting non-GP specialist medical trainees and workforce in regional, rural, and remote Australia? Submit your application for a Commonwealth funded Flexible Approach to Training in Expanded Settings (FATES) program grant. Applications for FATES round four funding are open until Wednesday, 31 July 2024.
FATES offers an innovative funding pool to encourage projects that support:
- flexible specialist training
- training support
- accreditation practices.
Please visit the STP webpage for details on how to apply, key dates and what the priority areas are that the Department is looking to support. If you have questions or need clarification around the eligibility of a planned project, please email stp@racp.edu.au.
Find out more
RACP Māori members are invited to attend the Inaugural Trainee Wānanga (Māori trainees) or Māori Health Hui (Māori Fellows) on Friday, 30 August from 9.30am to 6pm in RACP’s Te Whanganui a Tara Wellington office. The events are complimentary and catered.
The events have thought-provoking sessions and are dedicated to fostering whakawhanaungatanga within the Māori caucus and nurturing tuakana teina relationships among trainees and Fellows.
The Inaugural Trainee Wānanga is supported by the New Zealand Resident Doctors' Association and Specialty Trainees of New Zealand. Attendance at the Māori Health Hui can be counted towards Category 1 Educational Activities under RACP’s MyCPD Framework.
Register by Friday, 16 August and read the programs on the event website.
Register now l Read programs
National NAIDOC Week celebrates and recognises the history, culture and achievements of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people. Held in the first week of July each year (Sunday to Sunday), NAIDOC Week is an opportunity for all Australians to learn about First Nations cultures and histories. This year's NAIDOC theme is Keep the Fire Burning! Blak, Loud and Proud, which celebrates the resilience and unity of Indigenous communities, urging everyone to amplify historically silenced voices.
Find out more about the history of NAIDOC Week, access resources, and discover events held around Australia on the NAIDOC website.
Listen now
A fascinating case discussed by trainees and consultants to demonstrate a structured approach to diagnostic reasoning and case presentation. The case is of a 32-year-old woman presenting with constant and dull abdominal pain that had been sudden in onset. The pain is accompanied by nausea and vomiting but bowel habits were unchanged. The patient has a history of type 1 diabetes and a simultaneous pancreas-kidney transplant two years prior to the presentation. There is no history of rejection of pancreatitis and serum creatinine appears normal.
The attending nephrologist walks through the elimination of differential diagnoses typical of any patient and of particular relevance to a transplant patient.
Hosts
- Dr Stephen Bacchi (Lyell McEwin Hospital)
- Dr Amitjeet Singh (Lyell McEwin Hospital)
- Dr Chiang Sheng Lee FRACP (Lyell McEwin Hospital; University of Adelaide)
Please visit the Pomegranate Health webpage for a transcript and supporting references. Log in to MyCPD to record listening and reading as a prefilled learning activity. Subscribe to new episode email alerts or search for ‘Pomegranate Health’ in Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Castbox or any podcasting app.
RACP submission on the National Guidelines for Including Mental Health and Wellbeing in Early Childhood Health Checks
This RACP submission, led by the PCHD, outlines feedback to the National Mental Health Commission on the draft National Guidelines for including mental health and wellbeing in Early Childhood Health Checks. The National Guidelines aim to support states and territories to implement nationally consistent mental health and wellbeing checks as part of the early childhood health checks for children aged zero to five years of age and provide children and families with early help and support. The inclusion of mental health and wellbeing in the National Guidelines is built on the knowledge that the first 2,000 days of a child’s life are critical to their long-term thriving.
RACP submission on the Towards Australia’s National Immunisation Strategy 2025-2030
This submission outlines The RACP's feedback to the Department of Health and Aged Care on the Towards Australia’s National Immunisation Strategy 2025-2030 consultation paper. The National Immunisation Strategy aims to outline a shared mission to protect Australians from the harms of vaccine-preventable diseases. It also focuses on national efforts to form a roadmap for national action on key priorities in immunisation in Australia. This submission is based on existing RACP's work and member feedback on the six priority areas of the Strategy.
RACP submission on the draft Ninth National HIV Strategy 2024-2030
The Australian Department of Health and Aged Care invited The RACP to provide feedback on the draft National HIV Strategy 2024-2030 as part of a targeted consultation process. This submission outlines the College’s feedback on the draft strategy, including key elements highlighted by the Australasian Chapter of Sexual Health Medicine, that support efforts to reach zero HIV transmission in Australia and Aotearoa New Zealand.
RACP submission on the draft National Autism Strategy
This submission outlines the College’s feedback to the Department of Social Services on the draft National Autism Strategy. The Strategy aims to help advance outcomes of autistic people and initiate a more coordinated, national approach to supporting the autistic community across Australia. This submission is based on existing College positions on autism and member feedback.
The ACT Government issued a media release at the end of June announcing care leaver support has been extended to 21-years-old in the ACT. Young people leaving statutory out of home care will have a right to access support until their 21st birthday under legislation passed in the ACT Legislative Assembly.
The RACP welcomes this news, which we called for in our Health Care of Children in Care and Protection Services position statement, which was launched last year:
Must implement a nationally consistent framework for young people leaving care up to the age of 21 years to ensure they have access to the health and services they need, including mental health outreach and substance use support programs.
Media release l Position statement
Highlights from the most recent six-monthly Evolve report include:
For more information read the Evolve Report: August 2023 - January 2024.
The Therapeutic Goods Regulations 1990 has been amended, which results in Glucagon-like peptide-1 receptor agonist (GLP-1 RA) products no longer being able to be compounded by pharmacists. These changes will take effect from 1 October 2024.
Earlier this year, The RACP offered its broad support for these amendments based on feedback from relevant College bodies, specialty societies and members. Our advice also highlighted the risk of treatment interruption for patients using GLP-1 RAs for diabetes and obesity in the absence of alternative treatments that are affordable and similarly effective.
Webinar invitation
The Therapeutic Goods Administration has scheduled a webinar on Wednesday, 14 August 2024 from 5.30pm to 6.30pm AEST to explain the amendments and their impact on pharmacists, doctors and consumers.
Find out more and register
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As healthcare workers who dedicate our lives to helping others, it’s important to take the time to care for ourselves. We would like to remind everyone that it's okay to not be okay. If you need someone to talk to, you can reach out to the RACP Support Program. It's a free, 24/7 and completely confidential support service that is delivered externally through Converge International.
Whether you have something worrying on your mind, are finding getting out of bed to be a struggle, or just feel like talking to someone for helpful, judgement-free advice, this free support service may be just what you need.
Find out more
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