President’s update: Council of General Practice, mentorship, role of the doctor, AMA26, and more

Happy Friday!  

It’s been a week of looking to the future, at ways in which challenges facing our profession and public health can be met head on and overcome. 

My week kicked off with the Council of General Practice committee meeting, which, as always, was a great forum for exchanging ideas. We had fantastic discussions about how to improve access to immunisations through GP clinics by better enabling practice nurses, as well as on funding models for general practice. 

We considered how growing blended funding needs to be accompanied by strong guardrails to protect clinical autonomy and patient choice, while maximising possible value — particularly for multidisciplinary care and chronic disease management. 

Given recent headline-making social media exchanges, there was, of course, discussion around the intersection of pharmacy and general practice. As doctors, we can all see the important role pharmacists play in patients’ health, but we also understand the risks posed by continued insidious autonomous scope expansion. Effective care is truly collaborative and that means having pharmacists work as part of a team with GPs, not fragmenting access to care. We also touched upon the continued need for reform of Australia’s archaic pharmacy ownership regulations and the block on discounting of PBS medicines — another two factors which impact patient choice and care. 

Julian and I did several media interviews during the week about the AMA’s updated position statement on the role of the doctor. In a world where "access" is king, and task substitution is rife, it's more important than ever that we articulate what makes our role as doctors unique. The document sets out the value of our profession, highlighting the breadth and depth of medical education, supervised training, and ongoing professional development that underpins our role. 

In keeping with the theme of those interviews, it was a pleasure to launch the pilot of the AMA’s new mentorship program this week. We consistently hear from you that you want more support with mentorship – so we're taking action! But we've all been involved in matching schemes no better than speed dating at the local pub, so we're equipping you with skills for mentorship, rather than a forced relationship. 

The program is being designed in collaboration with Monash University and the Monash Centre for Health Research and Implementation, as a self-paced tool to build skills in mentorship for mentors, mentees, and sponsors. The first cohort is made up of 25 of our international medical graduate members, who will be involved in evaluating the pilot before we look to roll it out more broadly from next year, so keep your eyes peeled! 

Access to, and affordability of care, remains high on the agenda, and we make a point of meeting with as many MPs as possible to discuss how these issues are being felt in their constituencies. I met with Sam Birrell MP on Thursday, discussing how access to care through public hospitals can be improved in regional areas, and fee transparency for patients. 

Lastly, while you're stuck with me for a few more months yet, you will have seen that the election for the next AMA President and Vice President is happening soon at AMA26. But before the big day, all members have a chance to hear from the candidates at a webinar next Tuesday night. I recommend you sign up for the free event to get an early insight into what each is offering before the elections at AMA26 next month. 

To be part of the action at AMA26, get your tickets here! 

Have a great weekend, and see you next week!