|
26/06/09 |
|---|
Reflections on the
Rural Doctors Association of Queensland (RDAQ) Conference, Gold Coast
5 - 7 June 2009
Meet Our Sponsored GP Registrars and Medical Students
What Did the Medical Students Like About the Conference?
Another Bonus - The Pre-Conference Workshops
What Did CSQTC Staff Get up to at the Conference?
It's All About Relationship Building
And there's a couple of other announcements
Welcome to our New GPRA Sourced Board Director - Dr Sarah Kay
Further Resources Now Available for MAP 2010 Participants
Academic Registrar Posts Now Open
Registrar Research Prize $3000 - Apply Now
The following articles (and a very brave photo, thanks Emma!) have been contributed by GP Registrars, Medical Students and CSQTC staff. We thank everyone for their contributions and hope you find it a good read. We would also like to thank the RDAQ and the conference organisers for putting on such a great conference!
Meet Our Sponsored GP Registrars and Medical Students
The RDAQ is a great supporter of sponsoring Medical Students who belong to the rural health clubs, to attend its Conferences. The RDAQ Conference presents a forum through which students can gain exposure to both clinical and political aspects of rural health, and is a great opportunity for students to network with future health professionals and increase their knowledge of the health industry. Students are sponsored by organisations and by individuals. In excess of 60 student delegates (a significant percentage of the total Conference delegates) attended this year's Conference and CSQTC was excited to be part of the initiative. We extended this to also offer sponsorship of GP Registrars with a rural interest.
|
From left to right: Julianne Donovan (GP Registrar); Owen Latimer (GP Registrar); Peter Harrison (CSQTC CEO); Alistair Hamilton (UQ Medical Student - sponsored individually by Dr Bill Lang); Lars Schneider (Griffith Uni Medical Student); Emma Hogan (Bond Uni Medical Student); Adjunct Professor Mary Mahoney (CSQTC Board Chair); Narelle Lintern (UQ Medical Student). |
The RDAQ Conference was a fantastic opportunity to learn more about both the challenges and rewards of life as a Rural GP. Highlights included the keynote address from Professor John Pearn, recounting his experiences as a young rural reliever in the late 1960's, tales of trauma in Iraq from Mr Keith Towsey, an ADF Trauma Surgeon and best of all, dinner and a big night out at Surfer's with Rural GPs from across Queensland.
Dr Owen Latimer, GP Registrar
What Did the Medical Students Like About the Conference?
An extensive educational program, a rockin' social program, 70 medical students and 100 + health professionals from all over Queensland all together in Surfers Paradise for one weekend...Sounds like an awesome time and it sure was!
Not knowing what to expect from RDAQ having never attended a doctor's conference before, I must say I was a little dubious. However from the Friday night when it all began I felt extremely welcomed by all the health professionals and trade display staff. The encouragement and kindness shown towards the students by all the delegates who attended over the weekend was extremely motivating and uplifting. Knowledge gained from just chatting with everyone at RDAQ was very valuable and reinforced reasons as to why I would like to practice rurally. The educational program was extremely informative and I felt very privileged to be in the company of so many medical professionals with so much experience to share. |
Emma with friends at the Hard Rock Cafe |
On behalf of the Bond Rural Health Club BUSHFIRE, I'd like to sincerely thank CSQTC for your generosity and highly recommend this RDAQ experience for future years.
Emma Hogan, Medical Student Bond University
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
I am a first year medicine student who recently had the opportunity to attend my first medical conference - the 20th RDAQ conference. I thoroughly enjoyed the entire event, particular meeting all the different personalities involved in rural health, hearing about the issues they faced, and their thoughts on the future. Regarding the workshops, I enjoyed those of a more clinical nature (e.g. trauma and stroke care) as they pertained more to my current level of understanding. The entire event has solidified my current intentions to pursue a career in rural health.
Lars Schneider, Medical Student Griffith University
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
From being able to attend the RDAQ Conference due to the generous sponsorship from CSQTC I was able to gain a better understanding of the various issues that are currently facing rural practitioners. It also enabled me to realise the large scope of practice that is available for them, and realising that there are large social networks available for rural doctors. It was a hugely rewarding experience and I am incredibly grateful for the sponsorship from CSQTC to attend the conference, I feel it was an experience that will help to shape the direction of my future.
Narelle Lintern, Medical Student University of Queensland
Another Bonus - The Pre-Conference Workshops
Our RLO, Dr Danika Fietz attended one of the pre-conference workshops and here's an overview of what Danika got out of the workshop...
I attended one of the the pre-RDAQ conference workshops - Musculoskeletal Medicine. This was headed by Dr Geoff Harding (from the Sandgate Spinal Medicine Clinic) and Dr Neil Hearnden (who also happens to be GP Trainer at Arana Hills Medical Centre). This course was initially recommended to me by one of our recently Fellowed Registrars who has attended the 2 day version of the course for 2 years running. I soon found out that he was not the only person who had returned to do it twice, as one of the doctors in my group was also a 2nd-timer through experiencing the clinical value of the skills he had learned previously.
I found it an interesting aspect of medicine as, although we see back pain, headache and painful joints frequently in GP, some of us (ie. myself) tend to assess, treat what I can and then refer to allied health and/or specialists as appropriate. Through participating in this course, I reviewed my 'back pain' and 'headache' diagnostic workup, including red and yellow flags and, more impressively, found that I may be able to relieve some of the tension of a C2/3 headache or contribute to the relief of back pain in the space of my own office.
This is obviously quite satisfying as a doctor, but also fantastic to teach to the patient's "significant other" who can carry out basic treatments at home, thus empowering them to help themselves. This was a very hands-on workshop where I felt in many ways like I was applying the skills of a physiotherapist, although, apparently according to the presenters, these skills are rapidly being overtaken by the emphasis on exercise based therapies in physiotherapy.
Overall, it was a great overview and introduction to the GP specialty that is Musculoskeletal Medicine and I now know what is possible in the hands of a skilled practitioner. I would recommend this course to any GP Registrar who has an interest or would like to learn more about what they can do for those niggly or disabling musculoskeletal pains.
This 2 day course is run by Health Workforce Queensland and is held on the Sunshine Coast. See the Health Workforce Medical Education and Training Calendar for further details http://www.healthworkforce.com.au/main_event.asp?NodeID=27697&eid=243.
What Did CSQTC Staff Get up to at the Conference?
Well, it was all work and not much play for most of us, although we can't vouch for Dr Bill Lang as we left him to his own devices on the final night of the conference for the David Horn Memorial Dinner & Awards.
Danika, Bill and Jenny Quinlan, Rural Support Officer, covered the educational side of things at the Conference attending many sessions over the two days. Julie Ball, Executive Officer, was the permanent fixture at the CSQTC trade display, although Jenny and Danika were on duty at the display whenever they had a break from their sessions. CEO, Peter Harrison, was a difficult man to catch over the weekend, as he darted in and out of sessions and meetings and tried to catch up with as many of our rural Trainers and Stakeholders as possible. CSQTC's Board Chair, Adjunct Professor Mary Mahoney also attended the educational sessions and social events.
We had a steady flow of visitors at our trade display, including some prospective rural GP Trainers and many students who we hope will be future GP Registrars one day, and perhaps even end up training with CSQTC. Our Conference Competition instigated a lot of debate over what really are the correct colours of the CSQTC Nodes (eg. blue versus aqua; fuscia versus pink and so on), along with some concerns over our difficult questionnaire design! But those keen for the box of goodies persisted and entered the competition with the prize going to a very appreciative Medical Student named Andrew, who even scored a lovely floral arrangement as part of the prize to take home to his mum. |
 |
Dr Danika Fietz, RLO, presents the CSQTC prize
It is rumoured that Bill Lang's favourite part of the Conference was announcing the prize winners, as there were a few competitions being held over the two days. When it came time to announce the winners, the PA system decided to be uncooperative so the search was on for someone with a loud voice and not so retiring personality to hold court, to quiet the masses in the foyer, and to announce the lucky winners...it wasn't difficult convincing Bill he was the man for the job.
And the winner is..
Dr Bill Lang, |
 |
Bill did report, however, that apart from this 15 minutes of fame, there were some other highlights of the Conference for him, including Professor Pearn's keynote address; seeing CSQTC GP Trainer from Emerald, Dr Ewen McPhee be elected to the RDAQ Executive Committee (congratulations Ewen!); seeing Dr Dennis Lennox and Dr Ross Maxwell be honoured with RDAQ awards (congratulations Dennis and Ross); enjoying Sunday morning breakfast with the CSQTC sponsored GP Registrars, Medical Students, CSQTC staff and GP Trainers; and the youthful energy brought to the Conference by the large number of Medical Students and GP Registrars who attended.
Sunday morning breakfast was enjoyable and a great opportunity for us all to catch up on a more personal level. We asked as many of the CSQTC GP Trainers as we could find on the Friday and Saturday at the Conference to join us and it was great way to facilitate them to meet up with our GP Registrars and the Medical Students. It was a pleasant and cheery way to start the day, with the tables beautifully decorated with flowers from Danika and some balloons to mark the spot. |
 |
It's All About Relationship Building
Our Rural Support Officer, Jenny Quinlan is always looking for strategies to better assist our GP Registrars working in rural areas, so the RDAQ Conference was a great way for her to make some contacts...
|
Attending the RDAQ conference was a great way for me to network with other stakeholder organisations like Queensland Health, Health Workforce Queensland, ACRRM and RACGP's National Rural Faculty. In my role as Rural Support Officer it is important to maintain and build relationships with personnel who can assist with information and resources to support our rurally located Registrars. It is also great to catch up with our rural Trainers at such events. The opportunity to indulge in meaningful discussions with Trainers, away from the demands of their busy practices, is not to be under-estimated. The highlight of this year's conference was, of course, the opportunity that CSQTC had to present GP Training to a captive audience of Australia wide Medical Students who were already looking towards a career in rural medicine. It was a great weekend! |
Pictured above is Jenny with Dr Ewen McPhee, GP Trainer from Emerald
...attend the RDAQ Conference! This is one of the first Conferences that CSQTC has attended as a Trade Exhibitor and, from the promotions and marketing perspective, it was definitely worthwhile. I was unaware that such a large number of Medical Students would be attending the Conference and so I was delighted at the wonderful opportunity we had to showcase CSQTC's role in AGPT and in training the rural practitioners of the future. We were also able to make contact with some of the experienced rural practitioners who are now expressing interest in becoming involved in providing GP Training.
The most positive feedback we received about our Trade Exhibit was our photo slideshow featuring images from Bill, Peter and Jenny's rural adventures over the past 12 months. Images of many rural Practices, Trainers and GP Registrars in action, rural accommodation and tourist attractions were on display, from towns ranging from St George through to Rockhampton. These images of CSQTC's travelogue, interspersed with images of the three adventurers on their journey, and some great photos of interesting medical conditions provided a varied, informative and sometimes amusing snapshot of what our rural training region has to offer. |
 |
Participation in this conference also provided the chance to consolidate some existing relationships with stakeholders and establish new ones. There was the opportunity to gather information from and provide information to other Trade Exhibitors, such as the RACGP, ACRRM, Department of Veteran Affairs, PEPA, Q-Comp, Queensland Health Scholarships, and Queensland Rural Medical Family Network. Ideas for educational activities, resources and support networks resulted from this information gathering process.
Julie Ball, CSQTC Executive Officer
RDAQ has advised that photographs will eventually make it to their website, but in the meantime, there are some on Facebook, thanks to Dr Michael Rice. There might be one or two faces you recognise...
If you're a Facebook member, you can see them here http://www.facebook.com/photo_search.php?oid=5009283223&view=all.
If you're not a member, you can see them here http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=118416&id=828420298&l=fc998496ea
Welcome to Our New GPRA Sourced Board Director - Dr Sarah Kay
CSQTC is pleased to announced that Dr Sarah Kay has been endorsed by General Practice Registrars Australia (GPRA) and our CSQTC Board to serve as CSQTC's next GPRA sourced GPRA Board Director effective from Thursday 18 June 2009. Sarah follows Dr Duncan Lyall who is now a graduate of AGPT and a fully Fellowed GP with the RACGP and practicing full time at the Castle Hill Medical Centre in Murrumba Downs, Brisbane. The CSQTC Board, staff and I congratulate Sarah on her appointment as a Director of our Board and wish her the very best in this strategic role for CSQTC .
Our CSQTC Board, Staff and I thank Dr Lyall for his excellent service as our immediate past GPRA sourced Director, and congratulate him on being appointed by our Board to our Board co-opted Board Director position, to enable CSQTC to benefit further from his excellent contribution to the Board as a Board Director.
Sarah commenced the AGPT Program as a CSQTC Registrar in 2007, completing her ‘Basic' GP term as a full-time Registrar at the Emerald Medical Group Practice, and her Advanced GP term on a ‘part-time' basis at the Emerald Medical Group during 2007-2008. She is currently undertaking her Subsequent General Practice Experience (SGPE)/Extended Skills training at the Gympie Clinic. Sarah is an AGPT Registrar of the Rural Pathway.
With this AGPT background, Sarah brings to our Board experience as a Rural Pathway GP Registrar who has experienced both full-time and part-time AGPT training encompassing two Rural Practices (Emerald and Gympie), and who has an appreciation of the opportunities and challenges of training and working as a GP in rural communities for an extended period of time.
CSQTC looks forward to the contribution that Sarah will make in her CSQTC Board Director role.
Further Resources Now Available for MAP 2010 Participants
MAP 2010 for GP Registrars undertaking their first year of experience in a general practice setting during 2010 and for Category 1 Practices, opened on Monday 1 June 2009 and runs until 30 November 2009.
CSQTC has now uploaded a number of documents which we hope will provide further assistance to MAP participants. These include:
- CSQTC MAP Policy
- Information Sheet - Factors which influence GP Registrars' Practice Choices
- Rural Priority Checklist
- Rural Relocation Policy - 2010 Guidelines
To access these documents, please visit the CSQTC website http://www.csqtc.qld.edu.au/index.php?action=view&view=14910&pid=11366.
Any currently enrolled GP Registrars who wish to participate in MAP 2010 and have not yet submitted an Application for GP Terms, should do so immediately. The application form can be accessed at http://www.csqtc.qld.edu.au/index.php?action=view&view=14910&pid=11366 – then choose "Application for GP Terms" under Quick Links at the right of the screen.
Any questions regarding MAP should be directed to Practice Placements Services Officer, Jo Morris on 07 35528112 or jmorris@csqtc.qld.edu.au.
Academic Registrar Posts Now Open
Do you have a burning question or have you ever thought you would like to do some research and teaching? If so, an academic post may be for you. An academic registrar post provides a salaried position for six months full time equivalent for you to further or start your academic journey. These posts can be taken as an elective, an extended skills post, an advanced rural skills post or as part of your ACRRM training. Academic posts provide the opportunity to join an existing project (recurring academic posts) or develop your own project.
Interested? Check out the AGPT website http://www.agpt.com.au/TrainingPosts/Academictraining/. CSQTC GP Registrars should refer to the CSQTC website Academic Post page for contact details for potential Academic posts http://www.csqtc.qld.edu.au/index.php?action=view&view=17385&pid=14626. If you have further questions, please contact Dr John Buckley, Director Medical Education on 07 35528100.
But remember: Applications for academic registrar posts starting in January 2010 close 18 August 2009.
Registrar Research Prize $3000 - Apply Now
Are you an AGPT Registrar or a recently graduated Registrar (previous two years) who is about to complete, or has completed, a research project within the last 12 months? If so, you may be eligible for the Registrar Research Prize. The prize covers costs associated with presenting your research findings at a scientific meeting or conference between August 2009 and 31 July 2010. You don’t need to have completed an Academic Registrar post to be eligible. Applications close 31 July 2009. For information and to download an application form go to the AGPT website http://www.agpt.com.au/TrainingPosts/RegistrarResearchFund/.