IMG expedited pathway gets greenlight

A controversial plan to fast-track registrations for overseas-trained GPs has passed its final test after receiving the tick of approval from the nation’s health ministers.
 
The Australian Health Practitioner Regulation Agency (AHPRA) announced on Tuesday that the final approval will allow its new expedited pathway for GPs from three overseas locations to launch as planned on 21 October.
 
AHPRA says the ministers’ decision ‘paves the way’ for a range of reforms impacting specialist international medical graduates (SIMGs).
 
As of Monday, SIMGs able to apply include those with a recent Irish College of General Practitioners or Royal College of General Practitioners membership, or a Fellowship of the Royal New Zealand College of General Practitioners.
 
But with less than one week until the new expedited pathway opens for registration for those eligible specialists, the RACGP has once again raised significant concerns about its lack of detail.
 
RACGP President Dr Nicole Higgins told newsGP the responsibility for any consequences or adverse outcomes from the new pathway ‘now lays firmly at the health ministers’ feet’.
 
‘This is a political decision – the RACGP was already getting large numbers through quickly and above the targets set by AHPRA,’ she said.
 
‘The onus is now on AHPRA and the Government to make sure these doctors are supported and safe.
 
‘There are issues around communication, knowledge, and professionalism, and we want to make sure those doctors have the extra support required for their own wellbeing and also for their patients.’
 
Under AHPRA’s plan, eligible doctors will soon be recognised for their overseas qualifications and granted upfront registration to work in Australia.
 
Its aim is to entice more medical specialists to work in the country as Australia continues to battle a significant maldistribution of doctors.
 
‘It is designed to remove unnecessary regulatory barriers and increase the number of SIMGs seeing patients in Australia, while maintaining high standards,’ says AHPRA.
 
With GPs leading the way, those with specialist qualifications in anaesthetics, obstetrics and gynaecology, and psychiatry will be added to the accepted list in December 2024.
 
The next cohort of specialists to become eligible for the pathway is yet to be revealed and will be ‘based on workforce priorities’.
 
The health ministers’ decision comes despite RACGP data showing that one in five overseas-trained doctors require extra education and professional support, despite their qualifications being substantially comparable on paper to those of Australian GPs.
 
The college has long called on AHPRA to pause the new pathway’s rollout, saying it holds ‘deep concerns’ about its readiness and felt ‘blindsided’ by its initial launch.
 
Medical colleges, including the RACGP, have been responsible for assessing suitability to practice in Australia since 2005.
 
And with the program’s most significant shake-up in two decades now just days away, Dr Higgins said she has been left with a long list of unanswered questions and a lack of detail.
 
‘The whole process has felt very disrespectful of the medical colleges, especially the RACGP and ACRRM who engaged in good faith and were already delivering above and beyond the requirements of AHPRA,’ she said.
 
‘We strongly advised AHPRA and all health ministers about the pitfalls and the risks.
 
‘We called for them to work with the colleges to reduce their own red tape to provide a better experience for internationally qualified doctors coming into the country.’
 
AHPRA is adamant it has created a ‘rigorous qualifications assessment process’ to underpin its new expedited specialist pathway, saying there are additional checks and balances in place to make sure new doctors coming to Australia are safe to practice. 
 
Approved doctors must meet the same registration standards as all other specialists, as well as being supervised for six months by an Australian-registered specialist, have an orientation to Australia’s health system, and complete mandatory cultural safety education.
 
A national Medical Board committee, made up of doctors and community members, will make all registration decisions about individuals on the expedited specialist pathway.
 
Dr Higgins has instead called on the Federal Government to fund more training for Australian-educated doctors to become GPs.
 
‘By 2033 we’ll be importing more GPs than we’re training, and in 2025, we’ve got more doctors wanting to be GPs than we’ve got funded training places,’ she said.
 
‘The onus is on the Government to fund those training places and also to increase those medical school places that focus on training more GPs.’
 
The current specialist pathway to registration will continue for SIMGs who are not eligible for the new pathway, and this will continue to involve an individual college assessment.
 
Transition arrangements are also in place for SIMGs on the specialist pathway who are eligible for the expedited specialist pathway, and the registration standard is now available online.
 
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AHPRA Australian Health Practitioner Regulation Agency GP workforce IMGs international medical graduates