EXPANDED SETTINGS TRAINING PROGRAM

The AMA Council of Doctors-in-Training (AMACDT) is highly supportive of the Expanded Settings Training Program (ESTP). This program provides funding to support specialist training in expanded settings including the private sector. The ESTP was rolled out in 2007 and there have been some great success stories in the first year of the program, with trainees receiving superb education and training that complement their public sector positions. Like all new programs there have been some teething problems, with reports of a few facilities not providing an adequate educational experience for trainees. The Department of Health and Ageing is currently undertaking an internal review of the program. The AMACDT has stressed in its submission to the review that training posts need to be monitored to ensure they are meeting their obligations to trainees, particularly those facilities with limited experience in providing education and training.

MEDICAL TRAINING REVIEW PANEL (MTRP)

The AMACDT attended a meeting of the MTRP on 12 September 2008 to discuss the outcome of the Government's review into the future of the panel. The AMACDT has pushed hard for the MTRP to expand its role beyond vocational training. According to the AMACDT, the MTRP is the body best placed to ensure that medical workforce training issues are recognised and that governments improve their support for quality clinical training places for medical students, interns and vocational trainees. Read the full AMACDT submission here

AUSTRALIAN MEDICAL COUNCIL (AMC) CODE OF PROFESSIONAL CONDUCT

The AMC is developing a Code of Professional Conduct for the medical profession titled Good Medical Practice: A Draft Code of Professional Conduct. Feedback on the draft code is currently being sought. Copies of the code and the online survey can be accessed at: www.goodmedicalpractice.org.au

INTERN SURVEY TO IMPROVE CONDITIONS - QUEENSLAND

The Junior Medical Officer (JMO) Welfare Study is a survey being undertaken by the Postgraduate Medical Education Council of Queensland (PMCQ) JMO Forum. It is an anonymous online survey aimed at the 412 interns working at Queensland Health hospitals in 2008. The focus of the survey is junior medical officer welfare and work-life balance, and aims to collect data that will help improve working conditions for junior doctors in Queensland. The survey includes questions on preparedness for practice, health and well being, education and training, supervision, job satisfaction, work related stress, and burnout and coping mechanisms. The survey only takes 5-10 minutes to complete and is open from 27 August to 28 September 2008. The survey can be accessed here.