The National Medical Workforce Strategy is currently being finalised and expected to be published by the Commonwealth Department of Health in the next few months. The College has been a key contributor to the Strategy’s development over several years. ACRRM is represented on the National Medical Workforce Advisory Committee which has overseen the process. The College has also provided a series of written submissions and presented at a range of public consultations associated with the development.
Some key priorities for which the College has advocated include:
- Taking a nationally coordinated approach to ensure high-level commitments convert to ground-level resourcing especially in rural and remote communities
- Recognising the National Rural Generalist Pathway as a key rural workforce solution
- Redirecting health funding toward primary care and stemming growing workforce subspecialisation
- Recognising the importance of building strong, permanent, health resources and services within rural and remote communities
- Recognising that rural/remote models of care are distinct from those in urban systems and need fit for purpose solutions
Overall the College looks forward to the release of the Strategy. It is expected this will provide a broadly positive framework for refocusing and reforming national workforce planning and investment. The College has made clear, that this while welcome, will not remove the need for urgent immediate action to stem rural workforce decline. It has also emphasised that solutions will need to be matched by sufficient funding to be effective.
Ultimately our hope is that together with appropriate short term actions, the Strategy can prompt a systems reset toward delivering excellent care for ‘all’ Australians, regardless of who they are or where they are.