EV welcomes the appointment of Associate Professor Ruth Stewart as Australia’s next National Rural Health Commissioner. A/Prof Stewart will replace Emeritus Professor Paul Worley who, as Australia’s inaugural National Rural Health Commissioner, has been in the role since 2017. Her appointment is supported by industry leaders. ACRRM President Dr Ewen McPhee says the appointment of A/ Prof Stewart demonstrates the government is serious about the future of our rural and remote communities. “We commend the Ministers on selecting someone who is clearly passionate, informed and proactive, and we are confident they have chosen the best person for the job,” Dr McPhee says. “A/Prof Stewart is a highly experienced and committed rural doctor,” RDAA President, Dr John Hall, said. She worked for 22 years as a procedural GP in Camperdown in South West Victoria. In 2012 she moved to Queensland where she worked as a Senior Medical Officer on Thursday Island until 2019. She was then appointed Associate Professor of Rural Medicine and Director of Rural Clinical Training with James Cook University. Her roles include serving on the Boards of RDAA,…

Generally speaking, Billy fell into the role of co-host on the RACGP Podcast that is currently running on various streaming platforms including Spotify and Apple Play. “I had done some media training for the RACGP and a couple of months later I got a phone call asking if I would like to take part in a podcast for the College as they had “scouted” me! I was toying with the idea of doing something similar myself, so it was good timing.” “The aim is to inform as many GPs and GP trainees about the latest medical developments, give them tips on personal wellbeing, connect GPs through the podcast) and help improve the health of our communities. “Being produced by the RACGP it is tailored to GPs in Australia, including GP trainees, however the audience is going to be broader, even international, as it is being published on an open platform. “My co-host Dr Gill Singleton is fantastic, we actually only met for this podcast. On paper, RACGP thought we would be a great match, and we have been! She has…

From the commencement of semester 2 2020, there will be an increase in GP registrar base rates.   The specific clause in the National Terms and Conditions for the Employment of Registrars (NTCER) that relates to the increase is clause 11.1 Indexation – The base rates of pay prescribed in this agreement will be reviewed at the beginning of each financial year and adjusted in line with the most recent indexation of the MBS, level 23 consultation item. The new base rates of pay will become applicable in the training term immediately following the MBS increase.  Registrars will commence receiving the MBS increase from 1 July as part of their percentage calculation.  However, the base salary rate increase of 1.5% will not come into effect until the commencement of semester 2 2020 (3 August 2020).   For enquiries:  Registrars should contact GPRA directly  Supervisors and practice managers should contact GPSA directly.