GP Registrars need to learn as well as earn
The President of General Practice Registrars Australia (GPRA), Dr Melanie Smith today said that she was pleased to find the majority of general practice registrars are satisfied with the supervision and education they receive from training practices and that most registrars considered their training practice to be a safe and supportive environment.
“The 2017 Benchmarking Survey results show that most general practice registrars have an opportunity to work in practices where they have good learning experiences and receive good support,” said Dr Smith. “This is really important to acknowledge.”
“However, at least 10% of registrars have indicated they are dissatisfied with the quality of orientation processes, access to leave, their patient load and equity of rostering,” she said.
“Our survey has also revealed that about 10% of registrars were dissatisfied with the amount of in-practice supervision and almost 1 in 5 were dissatisfied with both the amount and quality of in-practice education. We need to work with supervisors to improve these statistics,” said Dr Smith
“There are clear expectations within the NTCER regarding the supervision and education that registrars should be receiving from their training practices.”
“In addition, funding is provided through AGPT for supervisors to provide dedicated teaching time with their registrars,” she said. “If funding is not adequate to achieve this goal, it should be a national priority to increase the level of funding.”
“Providing patient care in general practice is pivotal to registrars’ clinical training, and also brings billings income to their training practice. However, registrars are also there to learn from their supervisors. This is the fundamental basis of the apprenticeship model of medical education.”
“All training practices should strive to provide a high-calibre learning environment, including access to quality teaching and supervision, for their registrars. The registrar, supervisor, training practice and, most importantly, patients will all benefit as a result,” said Dr Smith.
ENDS
Inquiries:
General Practice Registrars Australia
enquiries@gpra.org.au or 03 9629 8878