Australia is setting aside more than $700 million (US$523 million) to train local doctors in the specialties areas—including dermatology, sport and exercise medicine, and psychiatry—and increase their placement in regional Australia.
In the latest federal budget to be released in just under a week, the Australian government has pledged $708.6 million (US$530 million) to run the medical specialist training program.
Additionally, $4.2 million (US$3 million) will go towards improving access for specialists to practice in regional, rural and remote areas.
The program, which has been running since 2010, will fund nearly 1,000 full-time places each year, with training across areas such as specialist rooms, day surgeries, and private hospitals, Regional Health Minister Dr. David Gillespie says.
“This four-year extension of the Specialist Training Program allows specialist trainees to continue to take the opportunity to train in rural communities, which we know creates a higher likelihood they will remain or return after their training is completed,” former regional doctor Dr. Gillespie said.
“There is strong evidence that undertaking medical training in a regional or rural setting increases retention rates.
“Already the program has benefitted more than 190 regional, rural, and remote locations, and has seen an increase in rural training from 309 full-time equivalent places in 2018 to 380 places in 2020.”
Health Minister Greg Hunt said that an essential focus of the 2022 program is to increase the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander specialist workforce in collaboration with the Australian Indigenous Doctors Association.
“This ensures that Indigenous Australians and regional Australia more broadly will benefit from a redistribution of the program’s existing specialist workforce, ensuring more services and training can be delivered where it is needed most.”
Other areas getting attention are dermatologists and psychiatrists, who are often in short supply in country Australia, Dr. Gillespie says.
“Psychiatrists are in undersupply nationally, especially in rural and remote areas,” he said. “Three projects funded in today’s announcement would directly assist with getting more of these two specialities to the bush.”
“The Australasian College of Dermatologists will roll out two programs that will boost training opportunities for this speciality in Townsville, Darwin and Katherine.”
