GPs’ emergency skills boosted in Northern Territory

GPs in remote parts of the Northern Territory are learning vital emergency medicine skills thanks to a partnership between the college and Flinders University.
 
Both organisations collaborated in a workshop held last weekend for 15 GPs and GPs-in-training based in the territory.
 
Taking place at a Flinders University simulation centre in Darwin on 22 October, the workshop used scenarios based on rural and remote healthcare challenges.
 
Participants worked through common emergency medicine situations, each of which was written by experienced rural GPs based on real cases.
 
In small teams, those taking part used strategies to stabilise a patient and prepare them for evacuation or retrieval.
 
The workshop also covered how best to communicate and work with other healthcare professionals in emergency situations, as well as helping participants develop strategies for self-care, stress management and debriefing.
 
It is the first workshop of its kind to take place since the NT Faculty was confirmed as a standalone entity earlier this year and was run in conjunction with the RACGP Rural Faculty.
 
RACGP Rural Chair Dr Michael Clements said it was ‘a great learning opportunity’ and a chance for participants to improve already advanced skills in emergency medicine.
 
‘In rural and remote areas of Australia, including in the Northern Territory, the demands for advanced emergency care skills in general practice are significantly higher,’ he said.
 
‘This is due to the relatively low number of GPs and the lack of immediately accessible specialist services.
 
‘You also need to consider the logistical and geographical difficulties of evacuating the seriously ill, which can be really challenging.’
 
The NT has the lowest number of fulltime equivalent GPs per 100,000 people in the country, at 88.7, far lower than Queensland (122.9) and the national average (114.5).
 
Residents of isolated areas are also more vulnerable to farming, mining, industrial, firearm and motor vehicle accidents.
 
It puts GPs with the skills to provide emergency care in a position to make even more of a difference in rural and remote communities, particularly those without easy access to a hospital.
 
The formation of a separate RACGP NT Faculty was confirmed this year, while Dr Sam Heard was appointed as the inaugural Chair last month.
 
Dr Heard said he has received positive feedback from those who attended the workshop.
 
The value of having a separate faculty was demonstrated at the event, according to Dr Clements, who said it was an opportunity for members to not only develop clinical skills, but learn from each other and share experiences.
 
‘We hope to be able to offer many more opportunities like this in the NT in the years to come,’ he said.
 
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emergency medicine Flinders University Northern Territory