News

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In Practice: Changes to NDIS Act

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This week’s round up also includes information related to practice incentive payments for COVID vaccine in-reach clinics, RACGP Presidential Elections, GP22, and recent clinical and professional developments.
 
Changes to NDIS legislation
On 1 July, changes to the National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS) Act came into effect that are designed to allow the National Disability Insurance Agency (NDIA) to deliver a better experience and outcomes for NDIS participants, their families, and carers.
 
Some of the key changes enacted by the National Disability Insurance Scheme Amendment (Participant Service Guarantee and Other Measures) Act 2022 include:

• acknowledging the central role of people with disability in co-design and the need to recognise and respect the relationship between people with disability and their families and carers
• introducing plan variations to make it easier and faster for participants to have their plan adjusted in specific situations without needing to go through a full plan reassessment
• updating terminology including replacing ‘plan review’ with ‘plan reassessment’ to avoid confusion with reviews of decisions
• clarifying that ‘episodic and fluctuating conditions’ (including psychosocial disability) can be considered permanent for the purposes of determining if someone might be eligible for the scheme
• adding protections for participants who want to use a plan manager.

Reporting in-reach COVID-19 vaccine clinics
If your practice is, or has been, providing dedicated in-reach COVID-19 vaccination services for workers or residents in residential aged care or disability care settings, it is eligible for a practice incentive payment.
 
To receive the payment, report any clinics you conducted between 1 November 2021 and 30 June 2022 through the ‘In Reach Vaccination Reporting’ tab now live on the COVID-19 Vaccine Administration System by Friday, 15 July.
 
If you have any questions about reporting these clinics, please contact your Primary Health Network.
 
Nominations now open for the 2022 RACGP Presidential election
Have the opportunity to be heard and shape the college by nominating to be the next RACGP President.
 
The RACGP President acts as a spokesperson for the college over a two-year term, advocating for Australian general practice by liaising with government ministers and officials, regulators, key stakeholders, and the media. The role is deeply involved in the college’s advocacy and strategic direction.
 
Candidates must be Fellows of the RACGP, and nomination forms must be signed by at least two eligible members and countersigned by the nominee.
 
Nominations close 12.00 pm (AEST) on Monday, 1 August. All the forms and more information can be found on the RACGP Elections webpage.
 
Discover the GP22 program and get your discount registration
Register for GP22 before 11.59 pm (AEST) on 12 July to take advantage of early-bird registration discounts.
 
The plenary sessions at this year’s conference will explore the extensive evidence that investment into primary care creates a sustainable healthcare system.
 
The first plenary will be delivered by Professor Jens Søndergaard from the University of Southern Denmark, who will speak to irrefutable international evidence regarding what’s possible in a country that invests heavily and strategically in general practice.
 
Register now.
 
Foundations and introduction to dermoscopy
Wednesday 3 August, 7.00–8.00 pm (AEST)
 
GPs in Training and early career Fellows are invited to join the first webinar in the Clinical skills in skin cancer series.
 
The series has been specifically designed to build the confidence of GPs in detecting and treating skin cancers, and focuses on developing core competencies in skin – especially for GPs in training, new Fellows and early career stage GPs.
 
This webinar will provide attendees with the foundations and introduction to dermoscopy and has been designed to be interactive, with participants encouraged to ask questions and discuss examples that they will encounter in practice. Learn more about using dermoscopy to identify and manage common types of skin cancers such as benign naevi, melanoma, basal cell carcinoma and Bowen disease.
 
Expansion of National Cervical Screening Program self-collection
From 1 July, anyone eligible for a Cervical Screening Test under the National Cervical Screening Program will have the choice to screen either through self-collection of a vaginal sample using a simple swab (unless a co-test is indicated), or clinician collection of a sample from a cervix using a speculum.
 
Self-collection is not appropriate for people who require a co-test because they are symptomatic, undergoing Test of Cure surveillance, have been exposed to Diethylstilbesterol in utero or have had a total hysterectomy with a with a history of high-grade squamous intraepithelial lesions. 
 
GPs are encouraged to:
 

• familiarise themselves with the available resources and training
• determine ways to support patients in offering self-collection as a choice for cervical screening
• engage with local pathology laboratories early to confirm they support processing of self-collected vaginal samples
• order the required swabs and other consumables.

RACGP’s Rural Generalist Fellowship launched
On 1 July, the RACGP launched a new Rural Generalist (RG) Fellowship.
 
The RG Fellowship will replace the Fellowship in Advanced Rural General Practice (FARGP) and includes strengthened core emergency medicine training and additional rural skills training to better prepare candidates to work as a rural generalist in their communities.
 
It’s a key milestone in advancing rural generalist medicine in Australia and ensuring rural communities benefit from access to more highly trained specialist GPs with additional skills in areas such as anaesthetics, obstetrics, palliative care and mental health to broaden the range of locally available medical services.
 
The RACGP will support and encourage current GPs in training completing the FARGP to transition to the RG Fellowship, but they have the choice to complete the FARGP.
 
FARGP graduates are invited to obtain the RG Fellowship via recognition of prior learning and experience.
 
Junior doctors can apply to undertake the RG Fellowship through the Australian General Practice Training Program (AGPT), with the RACGP’s next intake for applications to open from 8 August.
 
GPs in training who are currently completing the Fellowship of the RACGP (FRACGP) can opt into the RG Fellowship at any point during their training.
 
Practising GPs with the FRACGP and significant rural general practice experience and procedural or non-procedural skills can also apply to obtain the Fellowship via recognition of prior learning and experience.
 
Find out more about the Rural Generalist Fellowship on the RACGP website.
 
Reconnecting with your GP
The RACGP is encouraging the Victorian public to reconnect with their GP, or find a GP in Victoria. RACGP is launching this campaign to champion GPs as experts providing expert advice when it matters most.
 
The Victorian Department of Health has funded this advertising campaign to remind the public that it’s important to ‘Reconnect with your GP’, particularly given the events over the last few years.
 
The aim of this campaign is to communicate to the public the importance of having regular checkups with their GP, and how to book consultations with a GP in their area or by specialisation, using the Health Direct website. The adverts are themed around mental health, blood pressure checks and mammograms.
 
To find out more, visit the RACGP website.
 
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COVID-19 dermoscopy GP22 NDIS presidential elections self collection vaccination

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