| In this issue: |
- From the Chief Executive
- Training our future
- Congratulations!
- Work smart
- Horsham solutions
- And you thought AGMs were boring
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Welcome Doctors!
RWAV would like to welcome Dr Mahbub Mazumder who commenced practising in Yarram recently.
Doctor Mazumder and his family received a magnificent welcome and community orientation through the Yarram and District Health organisation.
The Lorne community is grateful for Dr Ern Chang´s recent start at the local medical centre. His appointment is very timely considering the influx of holiday makers due to hit the beaches as the weather warms up.
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Need to know
Christmas is not far away and we are often run off our feet leading up to the holiday period.
In order to help you plan we thought it helpful for you to know that the RWAV offices will be closed for the Christmas/New Year period.
All RWAV offices will shut down from noon December 23 and will resume business on Monday January 5, 2009.
We hope this information helps with your planning over the Christmas/New Year period.
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Learn the ‘how to´ on November 29
Doctor/patient outcomes can be enhanced through a greater understanding by GPs of how to treat Indigenous patients.
Well now there is a course designed especially for you.
Developed in conjunction with the Victorian Aboriginal Community Controlled Health Organisation, the Aboriginal cross cultural course, remodeled on feedback from previous attendees, will assist GPs in dealing with, respecting and treating Indigenous patients.
Be quick to register for the November 29 course, one of the last CPD point opportunities for 2008.
To download a registration form, click here.
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RWAV's Annual Report
The annual report was launched at RWAV's 10th aniversary AGM.
Click here to request a copy of RWAV 2007-08 Annual Report
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| From the Chief Executive |
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As the health sector discusses the blueprint for tackling future challenges in the Australian health system, it is salutary to reflect that many health reform debates of the past have lost focus and ended up as turf-wars because they all too often got caught up with who´s providing the care as opposed to who is receiving it.
In such an environment I believe that it is vital to place the communities´ needs in the centre of the debate, and then look at the sorts of health services required. |
At RWAV, we are adopting this approach to workforce planning by taking into account the population´s health status and need and examining the appropriate service provision response and the likely demands. Our new approach also looks at existing workload complexities and impacts on practitioner retention and well being. If we put community health needs firmly in the centre, then improved patient outcomes will hopefully follow.
However, you can´t provide quality health care without the providers. Fostering work environments and conditions that attract, support and retain the workforce is crucial to its sustainability. In order to have a future workforce we need to nurture our current health professionals, the teachers and mentors of our medical students and junior doctors.
Our Sustainable Practices project has been designed to strengthen Victorian rural general practice. This project offers individual practice advisory support, resource guides, business coaches and team-work advice for GPs and practice managers.
With a sustained workforce comes an opportunity to develop our future. And we can achieve this through teamwork and cooperation, a theme that will be explored in RWAV Conference 2009, Teamwork for Better Health.
RWAV is currently calling for papers, research and practical examples that provide a roadmap to building and sustaining successful teams in health, document the benefits to individuals and the community of team-based approaches to health service delivery and showcase the central role that GPs and general practice can play in the building of strong and effective health teams.
This is an opportunity for the health sector to showcase real life examples and stories on how to build effective teams and how to sustain them in health practice at the conference to be held in Melbourne on May 8 -9.
I encourage you to participate and offer your views on this significant issue.
Claire Austin
RWAV Chief Executive
For further information on the Teamwork for Better Health call for papers please visit the
RWAV 2009 conference website. |
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Training Our
Future |
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The Pre-vocational General Practice Placements Program (PGPPP) is designed to provide professional, well supervised and educational general practice placements for junior doctors as part of their training. |
The target group is junior doctors undertaking hospital training but who have not yet enrolled in a specialty and the program is a great way for junior doctors to experience general practice and consider it as a career choice.
PGPPP relies on Practices and Supervisors to get involved. Supervision expenses and Practice costs are reimbursed and participating supervisors regularly report on the positive impact of training junior doctors who have been exposed to the latest medical research and techniques.
Bill Newton, Chief Executive Officer of General Practice Victoria has received expressions of interest from a number of Divisions interested in the program and is encouraging more Divisions to get on board.
If you are interested in creating new PGPPP placements for 2010, please contact GPV on 03 9341 5200 or visit the
RACGP website to find out more.
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| Congratulations! |
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RWAV would like to congratulate the Melbourne University Rural Clinical School graduates of 2008. |
Nearly 60 graduating students and their families from Shepparton, Ballarat and Wangarratta will gather at a graduation dinner to celebrate their academic achievements.
RWAV is proud of the continued involvement with Melbourne University Rural Clinical School and is one of the primary sponsors of the graduation event. |
This year´s dinner will be held at the delightful Olivehouse restaurant in Kialla West, near Shepparton. With over 150 guests expected, it promises to be a night of celebration before students move into the next phase of their medical careers.
One of the graduating students, Verity Sutton explains.
“The graduation dinner is the highlight of the year for the Rural Clinical School final year students. It is a time for us to gather with family, friends, university and hospital teaching staff, and local community members to celebrate and commemorate the culmination of many years of study and growth,” said Verity. |
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| Horsham Solutions |
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RWAV recently conducted a successful one day workshop in Horsham that looked at local solutions available to address local and state health workforce issues. |
The workshop was attended by over 35 representatives from local government, local health services and hospitals, DHS and Primary Care Partnerships.
The workshop is the first in a series that RWAV will conduct across Victoria to allow all interested stakeholders the opportunity to come together and develop health workforce recruitment and retention plans based on the local needs of the area.
Speaking at the conclusion of the workshop, General Manager, Policy and Research, Sharon Kosmina said, “It was terrific to have so many different but like minded groups come together and come up with practical solutions that will improve the health and well being of the local community.” |
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| And you thought AGMs were boring |
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| Recently RWAV members and stakeholders attended the 10th Annual General Meeting and heard our invited speaker, Max ‘Tangles’ Walker discuss leadership and teamwork. |
Max inspired RWAV´s key influencers with anecdotal stories and experiences from his esteemed career as an AFL player, test cricketer and media commentator.
Max drew on a multitude of his life´s enlightening moments.
“You can´t achieve everything in life on your own, you need people around you and you´ve got to plug into their intelligence,” he urged.
He went on to say “Stiff and inflexible minds will not result in achievements,” and he challenged attendees to get into ‘uncomfortable zones’ for better outcomes. |
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| Work smart! |
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A new vision of partnership between RWAV and General Practice Victoria (GPV) has resulted in a range of collaborative projects and strengthen our work for general practice.
RWAV General Manager Policy & Development, Sharon Kosmina will present to Division chairs, board members and CEOs at the GPV state forum on November 21. |
The segment, focusing on the RWAV and GPV´s joint project, “Divisions Workforce Research” involving online surveys to Victorian Divisions will look at the initial feedback and issues.
Sharon Kosmina describes the GPV forum segment.
“We will report back to executives from Victorian Divisions the findings of the GPV-RWAV workforce study and its implications on the workforce.
“This is a two-way process, an opportunity for division leaders to hear information and exchange views about workforce,” Sharon said. |
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