GP workforce under the microscope
The Australia Government has welcomed the General Practice Workforce Report, released by the Australian Medical Workforce Advisory Committee. The report provides a comprehensive picture of the current GP workforce situation and sets out projections of GP workforce requirements to 2013.
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10 November 2005
ABB136/05
The Commonwealth Government welcomes the General Practice Workforce Report, released today by the Australian Medical Workforce Advisory Committee (AMWAC).
The report provides a comprehensive picture of the current GP workforce situation and sets out projections of GP workforce requirements to 2013. It highlights increases in demand for medical services in recent years, the effect of the decline in average working hours on the supply of GPs, and the consequent need to expand the primary care workforce in the future.
The government has, for some time, recognised the shortage of GPs and has taken a number of steps to improve the situation.
These include providing new medical school places and medical schools to train the next generation of GPs, which will expand the number of medical graduates by more than 60 per cent within six years.
They also include funding of more than $800 million a year through 100 per cent Medicare and the Strengthening Medicare financial incentives for bulk billing.
The government looks forward to working with GP representatives to explore further creative measures, including the development of improved ways of working with other health professionals to meet community demand.
The government will respond to the report as part of its response to the Productivity Commission study into Australia’s overall health workforce which is due in December this year, and in subsequent discussions on the health workforce to be held in the Council of Australian Governments (COAG).
An electronic copy of the report is available at www.health.nsw.gov.au/amwac/amwac/reports.html
For more information call Mr Abbott's office on ph 02 6277 7220.
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