Australians are being promised more affordable doctors' visits as part of a pitch to overhaul the way general practitioners work.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
or signup to continue reading
The Australian Medical Association says its seven-point plan, to be put forward at a crisis summit on Wednesday, will revitalise the general practice sector, making it a once again desirable career for young doctors.
Currently, only one in seven doctors want to pursue the field.
The plan calls for the indexation of Medicare to be improved so doctors can spend more time with patients and get more back in their rebates, in keeping with rising costs.
The association wants changes to the GP training program to make the field more appealing, and support for GPs to care for patients with chronic wounds.
The plan would support GPs to care for aged-care residents, expand the number of nurses and allied health services available in practices and help doctors deliver more after-hours care.
It would also introduce a voluntary patient enrolment scheme so patients could register with their GP to bolster coordinated, multidisciplinary, and patient-centred care, according to the association.
"Australians recognise that it's difficult to access affordable general practice, and if you think it's a problem in urban areas, it's an even greater problem for rural and regional Australia," association president Steve Robson said on Tuesday.
"The (association's) seven-point plan deals with the financial sustainability and viability of general practices in the country, and again will make general practice a desired career pathway for the clever young doctors.
"We need at least half of all Australia's young medical graduates to want to become and to join general practice in this country."
Australians were finding it more difficult to access GPs because of growing demand, increased doctor burnout, and financial and sustainability issues, Professor Robson said.
The association will put the plan forward at the RACGP General Practice Crisis Summit in Canberra on Wednesday.
"Without decisive action, we will see more practices close their doors across Australia, more people struggle to access a GP, and bulk billing will continue to collapse - which will result in more patients delaying care and health conditions deteriorating," RACGP president Karen Price said.
"We are in this crisis because Australia's general practice system has been stripped of funding and support for decades."
The AMA's plan asks for government funding above the $750 million already provided for primary care, with Prof Robson pointing out the federal health minister "recently acknowledged how critical this issue has become".
"A few weeks ago, federal Health Minister Mark Butler said the most frightening figure he saw in healthcare was that only one in seven young doctors want to become general practitioners," he said.
"We agree with that 100 per cent, and we want to turn that around completely."
It was critical to understand that spending on general practice was an investment and not a cost, Prof Robson said.
Australian Associated Press
