AGPT registrar numbers have slumped again, but interest in the rural generalist pathway is picking up pace, ACRRM says.
GP training places are going begging, but there is an unexpected ray of light on the horizon.
It may not have filled all its Australian GP Training (AGPT) posts, but ACRRM says it is oversubscribed for Rural Generalist Training Scheme (RGTS) places.
Health Minister Mark Butler has labelled the dwindling proportion of medical students going into general practice as the most “terrifying” healthcare statistic.
This year, only about 1250 of the 1500 total training places available under the AGPT were filled; Australian Doctor reports that the RACGP filled 86% of its 1300 allotted places while ACRRM filled 54% of its 150 allotted places.
The last time all training places were filled was 2017, and the 2023 intake is the lowest since 2014, when training numbers were capped at 1200.
AGPT numbers alone don’t tell the whole story, however, according to ACRRM president Dr Dan Halliday, a rural generalist based on the NSW-Queensland border.
ACRRM is the sole provider of the RGTS, a four-year pathway that offers three years in core generalist training and one year in advanced specialist training, delivered in a rural setting.
The college was funded in 2020 to supply 400 training places over four years.
“Of course, there are the well-known issues that the college is facing in regards to attracting trainees into the general practice training program,” Dr Halliday told The Medical Republic.
“However, there’s actually been overall growth in the number of general practice trainees within ACRRM training programs.”
The exact numbers are still being crunched, but Dr Halliday could confirm that more than 100 RGTS places had been filled this year.
He credits the rising interest in rural generalism to the work the college has done in legitimising the field.
“Rural generalist medicine is on track to be a recognised specialised discipline in the specialist field of general practice by the end of the year,” he said.
“So now we’ve got a defined end point for trainees to work towards, we are strongly advocating and working towards ensuring adequate remuneration.”
There was also a positive sign to come out of the annual National Medical Training Survey, which tracks interest in different specialty training pathways.
Of the interns surveyed who wanted to pursue a specialty, 11% indicated general practice through RACGP and 5% indicated general practice through ACRRM.
Dr Halliday sees the relatively high proportion of interns specifying ACRRM as their preferred college as encouraging.
“[Interest] is nowhere near as high as what it was previously, but there’s some glimmer of hope within the rural space that we are providing some reassurance and a defined pathway to practice that the trainees can work towards,” he said.
The ACRRM president is also hopeful that next year, once the dust from the training transition has settled, GP training numbers will “consolidate” and bounce back.
