Tasmanian Rural Medical Generalist Program Newsletter - Edition 11

Tasmanian Rural Generalist Program

SAVE THE DATE: Tasmanian Rural Health Conference 2018

'Resilience in Rural Communities'

To be held at the LGH & NICS, Launceston on March 24-25th, 2018

Rural Emergency Skills Training Course @ NICS March 22-23rd, 2018

Read a recent 'Mental Health, Resilience and Rural Practice article


In this edition:


Director - Rural Pathways news

CONGRATULATIONS to all of you who have recently found out you have intern positions in the Tasmanian Health Service. Tasmania is a great place to get a broad general experience and continue developing your skills.

You may be aware that Ochre have also lead a successful application for the Rural Junior Doctor Training Innovation Fund. This will allow for 5 additional intern positions in Tasmania for 2018. These positions will go ahead pending accreditation.

These positions will be available statewide, and include rotations to Queenstown, King Island, Flinders Island, St Helens and Huonville. More information is available on the fact sheet. A number of the supervisors will be attending the upcoming RUSTICA event  in Hobart.

As well as interns, we have been interviewing for the dedicated TRMGP RMO positions in the north-west. CONGRATULATIONS to our new TRMGP RMOs - we look forward to supporting you toward your goal of becoming a rural generalist.


RACGP GP 17 Scholarship

The RACGP GP 17 Scholarship for students, interns, RMOs and GP registrars - WIN 1 of 5 packages to attend GP17 in Sydney. For more information, please visit GP 17


Want to be a research participant on Antibiotics for URTI?

This RCT is looking at shared decision making around antibiotic prescription for URTIs. For more information, please visit Bond University Centre for Research in Evidence-Based Practice - Be part of our trial of decision aids- An Invitation for General Practices.


Diploma of Child Health

Please note that the DCH offers commencement of the 12 month course twice a year. For rural GPs or trainees wishing to increase their paediatric knowledge, this is a distance course.


Statewide Credentialing for THS

The THS has moved to a statewide credentialing process using Mercury eCredential for all doctors, nurse practitioners, dentists and some allied health staff.

This helps the THS Credentialing and Defining Scope of Clinical Practice (SoCP) Committee verify your's and others' capability to provide safe, high quality care to our community, and define your scope of practice.

If you haven't registered or updated your profile yet, please visit Mercury Credential, log in and start updating.

Once your profile is complete, you can then update it at regular intervals rather than complete new applications each time! Your profile is protected by you and only you can determine who has access to the information.

If you have any issues locating your profile, contact the eCredentialing team on 6777 4334 or email ecredential@ths.tas.gov.au


Aboriginal Eye Health - did you know?

Vision loss accounts for 11% of the health gap between Indigenous and non-Indigenous Australians, and 94% of vision loss is preventable and treatable! In Tasmania, much of this is due to refractive error, cataracts and diabetes. Do your patients need glasses? Cataract surgery? Or screening for complications of diabetes? For more information on services in your region, contact your local AMS or TAZREACH by emailing tazreach@dhhs.tas.gov.au


UTAS MPH - Remote and Polar Medicine

A few of you are currently competing your Master's in Public Health, and need to consider your Master's research projects. I recently caught up with the MPH team and provide a few tips for those looking to do this in the future.

Complete CAM720 - Health Research Methods before you enrol in CAM723 and CAM724. This will give you the information and skills you need to do the next steps. It also provides you the opportunity to clarify your research question and apply for ethics approval prior to starting your project. Remember of your ethis is high risk (i.e. clinical, involving children or regarding Aboriginal health) it may take 12 months to be approved.

You can find more information in the course handbook

Also, check out the research register. This outlines existing projects you may be able to link in with, and will give you an idea of the various supervisors that are involved with MPH. Remember, if you have a particular idea around a new project, talk with your MPH lecturers who will be able to help guide you through this process. The register is attached to this newsletter. Please note that it will be updated prior to each semester. For the most recent edition, see your MPH lecturer or email Rosie Nash at rmcshane@utas.edu.au

If you are a potential supervisor, and would like to make your projects/data available to Masters students, please use the form on the last page of the register to add your project to the list of opportunities.


Events

The new Tasmanian Rural Medical Generalist Pathway calendar is LIVE!

Feedback suggested you wanted one place to go to find Tasmanian events, so we have collated them into a calendar on the Tasmanian Rural Medical Generalists website

Email sharee.taylor@dhhs.tas.gov.au to have your event included on the calendar.


Interested in HMO work in Launceston?

St Vincent's Hospital is looking for rural generalists to be a part of their team. They already have a number of GPs involved in GP Anaesthetics, ward cover and with admitting rights. Contact Grant Musgrave, CEO to find out more about what services and experiences might be available to you Grant.Musgrave@calvarycare.org.au