Bush health advocates welcome rural health funding

The 2018-19 Budget will provide $83 million over five years for the Stronger Rural Health Strategy which will contribute some funds towards the $95 million investment in the Murray Darling Medical School.

The Rural Doctors Association of Australia said the Federal Government delivered for rural health, with a Stronger Rural Health Strategy worth $550 million being announced.

RDAA president Dr Adam Coltzau said the Budget included a wide range of initiatives that would make a real difference to the health workforce in rural Australia and the many rural and remote communities it serves.

“This is the rural health Budget that RDAA has been waiting for,” Dr Coltzau said.

“There are not just one or two initiatives here – this is a multi-pronged approach to supporting improved medical workforce distribution to rural and remote Australia.”

The Australian College of Rural and Remote Medicine president Associate Professor Ruth Stewart said “the college was broadly supportive of the changes in legislation and funding signalled in this Budget”.

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“This package addresses each step in the training pathway that produces doctors with the confidence and competence to be a pivotal part of the health care team in rural and remote communities,” Ms Stewart said.

“Each item shouldn’t be taken in isolation; instead, it should be viewed as part of the larger package that will strengthen this country’s health services.

“These items aim to set Australia on a path to a future where rural and remote community members will know that the doctors who care for them are trained to the highest standards,” she said.

She said the college supported a commitment to increase opportunities for junior doctors who wanted to try rural practice.

“Increasing the opportunities for junior doctors to work in the community under supervision is a welcome change and should give junior doctors a good taste and see experience,” she said.

Ms Stewart said some of the highlights of this budget for the college and its members were the items that would help recruit and retain the right health care professionals, with the right training, to rural and remote communities.

“The changes to legislation for rural bonded medical education programs will benefit rural communities and give equity and reassurance to doctors in training,” she said.

“In addition, bulk billing incentives will now be focused on areas where the need in health care outcomes, in socio economic status, and in access to health care is greatest.

“It’s the combination of these items, and many others in this budget that will see us start to shape the future of rural and remote health.”

RDAA president Dr Adam Coltzau the RDAA welcomed the expansion of Australian-trained junior doctor rotations in supervised rural primary care settings, as part of the Junior Doctor Training Program.

“We have been advocating strongly for increased junior doctor rotations with supervision as they are an excellent recruitment mechanism for future rural doctors. 

“These rotations provide a great opportunity for junior doctors to get a feel for rural medicine in a supported environment, and the expansion of this program will see an increase from the current 240 rural rotations to over 1000 once it is fully implemented. 

“This is great news for rural communities and we commend the government for committing to this program. 

“There will also be an additional 100 Rural Generalist training positions to commence in 2021, and we believe this demonstrates a commitment to the National Rural Generalist Pathway.

FURTHER BUDGET READING:

"We have been a major supporter of this Pathway, and see it as a critical initiative if we are to ensure the next generation of rural doctors have the right skills to meet their local community needs.

“We also acknowledge the commitment from the Federal Minister for Rural Health, Bridget McKenzie, to provide the National Rural Health Commissioner, Emeritus Professor Paul Worley, with the required resources and support to progress the next phase of work towards implementation of the National Rural Generalist Pathway.”

Rural Medical Schools have been a contentious issue in the lead-up to the Budget, however Dr Coltzau said the RDAA was satisfied the government had made enough commitments for junior doctor training in the post-university years that it can now support the additional Rural Medical School programs announced in this Budget.

“We thank the government for listening to our call to only progress a rural medical school announcement if there was also investment in, and a commitment to, increasing rural junior doctor positions” Dr Coltzau said.

“We are pleased to see that there are a number of initiatives that together will help build the capacity of our rural practices and hospitals to train young doctors and provide them with a rewarding medical career in our rural communities.”

In addition to these initiatives, RDAA supports in-principle a range of other Budget announcements supporting the rural medical workforce and rural communities, including:

“RDAA will work with the government and Department of Health on the various initiatives to ensure the detail and implementation align with the needs of rural communities across Australia” Dr Coltzau said.

“The National Rural Health Commissioner will also play an important role in ‘rural proofing’ the health budget initiatives. “Finally, while the impact of the Medicare freeze on rural general practice will continue to be felt for a number of years to come, we welcome the next stage of the lifting of the freeze which will see GP consultation item numbers re-indexed from 1 July 2018.

“We greatly look forward to working with the Federal Government and Department of Health to bring the benefits of the Stronger Rural Health Strategy to fruition.”