GP shortage bites despite rising IMG numbers

Healthcare practitioner numbers have skyrocketed by 18% since Australia was crippled by the COVID-19 pandemic, so why the chronic shortage of GPs?
 
There are now 877,119 practitioners registered in Australia across all professions, with more than 5000 people applying every month, according to new AHPRA data.
 
Specifically, doctor numbers have grown 15% since June 2019, rising from 118,996 up to 136,742 in June this year.
 
Despite the surge, it is predicted Australia will still be short 10,600 GPs by 2031, with demand for GP services expected to increase by 58% over 10 years.
 
‘Many of the most critical pandemic-fuelled health workforce shortages are progressively being addressed; however, continued work is needed to address key areas of need,’ AHPRA said.
 
Today’s general practice workforce is reporting an ongoing battle against rising costs, tax grabs, international recruitment, doctor retirement, and burnout.
 
Former RACGP Rural Chair Associate Professor Ayman Shenouda, who came to Australia as an international medical graduate (IMG) in 1992, said significant changes are needed to attract doctors into general practice before the crisis worsens.
 
He told newsGP that task begins in the classroom.   
 
‘[Doctors] do most of their training within the hospital system and it’s controlled by other specialties and then all they can see and be inspired by is other specialists,’ Associate Professor Shenouda said.
 
‘It does influence their decision in the end because they want to have a role model to look at, and we want to increase the exposure of students to their practice where they can understand the art of general practice and how good a profession it is.’
 
AHPRA found in the past year alone, more than 27,000 internationally trained practitioners have been registered to work in Australia, including 5918 medical practitioners.
 
But the regulator’s chief executive Martin Fletcher says more needs to be done to help streamline the employment process for those IMGs.
 
‘There is always more than can be done to ensure Australia has an adequate supply of safe health professionals,’ Mr Fletcher said.
 
‘We are working closely with governments and employers to identify areas of specific need, which allows us to escalate applications for registration where critical health workforce vacancies need to be addressed.’
 
He wants to see changes made to English language requirements to help further increase the attractiveness of Australia for experienced overseas practitioners.
 
The RACGP has already committed to making changes to its accreditation processes in the wake of the interim Kruk Report, investigating how to simplify applications for IMGs and help fill crippling rural workforce gaps.
 
Associate Professor Shenouda said changes are needed not just to the accreditation of IMGs, but also to support them when they arrive in Australia. 
 
‘We need to really look after those doctors and support them in every way we can so they can get oriented with our system and get adequate training for them,’ he said.
 
‘You’re dealing with patients, you’re dealing with their lives. You change lives, you change outcomes of health, outcomes for our country, that’s what general practice does.
 
‘It’s not only the health of rural communities, but the GPs looking after them are on the verge of burnout.’
 
That shortfall is hitting particularly hard in rural areas according to the RACGP’s latest Health of the Nation report.
 
Regional patients are likely to wait longer than they felt acceptable for a GP appointment, and more likely to wait 24 hours or more for a GP appointment for urgent care.
 
Associate Professor Shenouda said the need for a strong and well-equipped rural general practice workforce is more important than ever before, and government needs to create meaningful change to keep practices afloat.
 
‘It’s a problem because patients deserve to have access to quality care no matter what their postcode is,’ he said.
 
‘One of the things that we’re struggling with is to advocate for general practice so that governments can understand how important it is.
 
‘We’re dealing with chronic disease, we’re dealing with palliative care with an ageing population, we’re dealing with a huge mental health surge especially after COVID, and who’s doing the majority of this work?
 
‘It’s general practice.’
 
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