August has been a busy month of travel, connection, and conversations about the future of rural general practice. Highlights included visits to Karratha and Roebourne, and preparing to speak at the New Fellows Conference in the Swan Valley on ‘uncertainty and grit’ in rural GP life.

• Grow our own – strengthen the rural training pipeline
• Build supervision capacity – expand flexible models like remote supervision
• Maximise the workforce – promote innovative service delivery
• Support International Medical Graduates – ensure fair, context-aware entry pathways

• Learn more on the RACGP PESCI webpage
• Apply to become an examiner

Empowering women in rural general practice: Leadership, advocacy and mentoring – pre-conference workshop at GP25

The Doctors for Women in Rural Medicine Committee (DWRM) is excited to announce we will be hosting a pre-conference workshop at the GP25 Conference.
 
‘Empowering Women in Rural General Practice: Leadership, Advocacy and Mentoring’ aims to provide an immersive, face-to-face professional development workshop that builds leadership, advocacy and mentoring skills among rural female GPs. The aim is to strengthen networks, build confidence, and offer tangible skills to support women in navigating and shaping their careers.
 
Sessions on the day include mini workshops in mentoring, how to meet with your MP (and why you should), speed networking, presentations on networking and career pathways and possibilities and an interactive panel discussing leadership from the bush, where we’ll be joined by Dr Nicole Higgins, Dr Ashe Coxon, Dr Danielle Allan, Dr Karen Nicholls and Shayne Sutton, RACGP’s Chief Advocacy Officer.
 
Make sure you include registration for the workshop in your GP25 registration.
 
If you’ve already registered for GP25 and you’d like to add the workshop to your registration, email the team at rural@racgp.org.au.
 

Congratulations to our Rural Generalist New Fellows

Congratulations to our new Rural Generalist Fellows who completed FRACGP-RG in July 2025.

Introduction to Point-of-care Ultrasound - Launceston

RACGP Rural invites you to attend an Introduction to Point-of-care Ultrasound workshop in Townsville.
 
Date: Saturday 4 October 
Time: 8.30 am – 4.30 pm
Venue: Launceston Clinical School, Level 2/41 Frankland Street, Launceston 7250
Cost: $995 for RACGP members and $695 for RACGP registrars

About the course:
 
This full-day workshop will increase your understanding of the applications of point-of-care ultrasound in the diagnostic process. Experts will guide you through its diverse applications in rural primary care. You’ll be introduced to basic techniques using advanced, high-end mobile ultrasound equipment provided by our sponsor GE HealthCare.
 
Participants will rotate through six ultrasound skills stations:

• eFast
• Deep venous thrombosis
• Heart and lung ultrasound
• Intravenous line placement and foreign object retrieval
• Musculoskeletal soft tissue
• First trimester transabdominal obstetric ultrasound

This workshop is sponsored by our partner GE HealthCare.

The Rural Procedural Grants Program (RPGP) helps cover professional development costs for GPs providing procedural and/or emergency medicine services in unsupervised rural and remote settings. 

Not yet enrolled?
Join the RPGP to access financial support and keep uour procedural and emergency medicine skills up to date - so you can continue delivering vital care to your community. You may be eligible for up to $32,000 per financial year, depending on the services you're credentialed to provide. 

Need help?
Our dedicated RPGP team is here to support you through the application and claims process and answer any questions. Visit our website, email the team, or call 1800 636 764 for more information.

AGPT Rural and Rural Generalist training

NSW proudly launched the inaugural Rural Showcase in August 2024 – an innovative initiative designed to engage metro-based and composite registrars and highlight the diverse opportunities in rural general practice. The event brought together practices from areas of need, offering a platform to share insights into rural medicine, career pathways, and the unique rewards of working in rural communities.
 
Building on the success of our initial program, we’ve expanded invitations to over 30 rural locations across New South Wales and the Northern Territory, including Inverell, Moree, Deniliquin, Broken Hill, Griffith and many more.
 
On 6 August, we held our third Rural Showcase at CommBank Stadium, welcoming nearly 200 registrars. The event continues to provide meaningful connections and deepen understanding of how rural placements can support fellowship training.
 
The Rural Showcase is more than an event – it’s a growing movement to strengthen the rural health workforce and inspire the next generation of rural GPs.

Perioperative Medicine scholarships offered

The Australian and New Zealand College of Anaesthetists (ANZCA) invites fellows to apply for one of two scholarships to undertake the ANZCA Course in Perioperative Medicine in 2026. Funded by the Alan & Kate Gibson Fellowship, the scholarship is open to anaesthetists, surgeons, intensivists, physicians and general practitioners with a strong interest in perioperative medicine and commitment to improving patient outcomes.
 
One of the scholarships is specifically for clinicians working in a regional or rural setting. Please see here for more information. Applications close on Wednesday 15 October.

Calling all medical students, prevocational doctors and rural registrars

Would you like to attend our flagship GP conference in Brisbane?

We're offering a number of free registrations and travel bursaries where you'll enjoy a curated program, networking with RACGP leaders, GPs and rural generalists, and gain valuable insights from expert speakers. 

Submit your expression of interest by 11.59pm (AEST) Wednesday 10 September. 

Expression of Interest: Join the RACGP Rural Anaesthesia Advisory Group (RRAAG)

RACGP Rural is seeking Expressions of Interest from members to represent Tasmania, the Northern Territory, and the training cohort on the RACGP Rural Anaesthesia Advisory Group (RRAAG).
 
The RRAAG provides strategic advice and clinical insight to RACGP Rural on issues relating to rural generalist anaesthesia practice, including training, workforce, policy and safety. The group includes experienced GP anaesthetists from across the country and works in close collaboration with other stakeholders.
 
We are currently looking to fill three representative roles:

• Tasmanian representative
• Northern Territory representative
• Training representative (GP anaesthetist trainee)

Online Focussed Psychological Strategies Skills Training

RACGP Rural’s Online Focussed Psychological Strategies Skills Training (FPS ST) package provides GPs with essential training to enable them to become a GP provider of Focussed Psychological Strategies (FPS) and provide cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT)-derived counselling to patients in their practice.
 
This flexible, fully online and accredited training package uses technology, peer learning groups and locally available resources to provide GPs with access to complete all the requirements of FPS ST – without leaving their home or practice. 
 
On completion, GPs can register with Medicare as FPS providers and access FPS related MBS numbers 2721, 2723, 2725 and 2727.
 
The General Practice Mental Health Standards Collaboration (GPMHSC) is currently offering GPs a training subsidy that covers part of the cost of completing accredited Focussed Psychological Strategies Skills Training (FPS ST). The subsidy is limited and subject to availability.
 
Eligible GPs will be reimbursed $600 once they complete the requirements for the Online FPS ST package and register as GP providers of FPS with Medicare Australia. For more information on the FPS training subsidy, including eligibility criteria and how to apply, visit the GPMHSC website.