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Nine in 10 AGPT participants satisfied with program quality

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The success of college-led general practice training has again been demonstrated with the release of the Australian General Practice Training (AGPT) Program 2023 National Registrar Survey (NRS)  report.
 
More than 92% of the 1365 respondents – representing 39% of AGPT participants – were satisfied with the quality of overall training and education experience provided by their supervisors and training practice, including a satisfaction rate of 85.1% among those in the RACGP program.
 
Chair of RACGP GPs in Training Dr Rebecca Loveridge told newsGP the results showcase the success of the nationally consistent training program.
 
‘Consolidating the work of multiple regional training organisations into a college-led training model was a complex task which, as the high levels of satisfaction among registrars reflects, was very successful,’ she said.
 
‘We’ve seen RACGP training numbers increase from 2023 to 2024, with more registrars working in rural and remote communities.’
 
RACGP President Dr Nicole Higgins praised the efforts of everyone involved in transitioning general practice training to the college in February 2023.
 
‘The college’s GP Training team, including our hardworking medical educators, the GPs who train our next generation, should be proud of these results,’ she said.
 
‘They speak to a training program that supports and mentors doctors to become specialist GPs who can meet the needs of their communities, now and into the future. Since the RACGP took a leading role in general practice training, our educators and support teams have dedicated themselves to providing a welcoming, supportive, rigorous, and engaging training program, and these results reflect that.
 
‘They also speak to the limited disruption to general practice training the college has delivered for registrars, GPs, and the communities who depend on them.’  
 
The survey is designed to support continuous improvement of education and training by providing insights into registrars’ experiences in the AGPT Program, with 62% of respondents describing the transition to college-led training as smooth and having no impact on their training.
 
Funded by the Department of Health and Aged Care and led by the Australian Council for Educational Research, the 2023 AGPT NRS included all registrars who were enrolled in the AGPT Program and in active training in Semester One, 2023.
 
The report details survey responses for general practice registrars training with the RACGP and where possible, provides a breakdown across MMM locations, state and territory, and nationally.
 
Overall, respondents reported:

• 85.6% satisfaction with the quality of training advice               
• 87.4% satisfaction with feedback on training progress
• 81.4% satisfaction with support for exams and assessments.

Results were also positive for boosting the rural GP workforce, showing that 82.7% of Rural Generalists (RGs) intend to remain in regional practice. Other evidence points to the fact that those who train in rural and regional communities are more likely to stay and work.
 
Within the survey, RGs also reported 87% satisfaction with support from relevant state or territory coordination units. Additionally, 57% of general practice registrars overall have undertaken, or are undertaking, education aimed at understanding the health needs of rural communities, with those yet to complete still able to do so prior to the end of their training.
 
Meanwhile, 75.9% of registrars participated in Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander cultural safety and awareness training, with 94.8% satisfaction among those registrars.
 
Strengthening the GP workforce, with a focus on regional, rural and remote, is an advocacy priority for the RACGP, calling for the next Federal Budget to go further to support a strong GP workforce by removing barriers to training. 
 
Dr Loveridge said the GPs in Training faculty has received member feedback on what is needed to do this.
 
‘We know that parity with our hospital-based colleagues in terms of pay and leave entitlements is a key priority,’ she said.
 

(L–R) Dr Rebecca Loveridge, Chair of RACGP GPs in Training, and Dr James Brown, RACGP National Director of Training, at GPs @ Parliament in Canberra this week. (Image: Jake Pinskier)

As part of these advocacy efforts, the college led a group of GPs to Canberra this week for GPs @ Parliament to discuss key healthcare reforms with politicians, including ways to boost the GP workforce.
 
Dr Higgins said the release of the latest 2023 AGPT NRS is timely amid discussions in the capital to help advance the college’s advocacy priorities. 
 
‘As I’ve been saying this week to MPs and Senators in Canberra, if they want their constituents to be healthy throughout all stages of their lives, they need to work together to build a stronger GP workforce,’ she said.
 
‘GPs specialise in whole-of-person care, which keeps people healthy and out of hospital through efficient and effective use of health resources.
 
‘We need to support and grow our GP workforce, and we know what works – investment to ensure general practice registrars are as well-supported as their hospital colleagues. That’s why the next Budget must fund paid parental and study leave for registrars and an incentive to ensure they’re paid the same as those working in hospitals.’
 
Dr Loveridge is also hopeful the college’s asks will be prioritised.
 
‘We’re asking for Federal investment into general practice training to provide equal entitlements for doctors training in community compared to the hospital system,’ she said.
 
‘Twenty GPs, myself included, have been meeting this week through GPs @ Parliament to explain that this investment will remove the financial barrier that junior doctors face when choosing to specialise in general practice.’
 
In response to the national survey, Dr Higgins adds that with international medical graduates making up around half the rural GP workforce, it is vital to support them to ‘succeed and stay in their communities’.
 
‘We can – and we should – also support well-qualified doctors who gained their degrees overseas to train as specialist GPs in Australia,’ she said.
 
So far in 2024, the RACGP reports that 114 incentivised training placements have been successfully filled in areas of workforce need, and 91% of new GP training places were filled in 2024, compared to 85% in 2023, with rural places growing by 11%.  
 
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AGPT Program general practice registrars general practice training GP workforce registrar survey

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