NT Pioneers of PGPPP Our Story So Far Ms Nicole Lamb, Dr Kishan Pandithage, Ms Ada Parry, Ms Shanthi Bandara
How it all began 2005 the first placements commenced Only 8 placements out of a possible 20 were filled Feeder hospitals on NT based Alice Springs / Royal Darwin Placements only in Indigenous Health 5 day orientation Little contact with the supervisors and clinics
The figures so far Year Funded weeks # of placements Urban Rural / remote Total weeks training 2005 260 8 0 8 85 2006 260 12 0 12 105 2007 416 23 5 28 310 2008 572 32 5 37 405 2009 624 31 2 29 381 2010 624 53 4 49 632 2011 1440 71 5 66 892 2012 1440
Who are the main players in the placement Prevocational doctors Feeder hospitals Supervisors Clinics / practices NTGPE
Program Participants Now come from NT, Vic, SA, NSW PGY 2 and above only Self selected
Overall placement experience: This question is asked at the end of their placement during debrief via survey monkey Rating of poor, below average, average, above average and excellent Results 8% Average 33% Above average 59% Excellent
General Feedback on their placement Do they feel isolated during their placement? 32% yes 68% no Do they feel part of a team? 97% yes 3% n Did you find the placement stressful? 34% yes 66% no
Did your placement inspire you to: Work in a rural of remote setting 89.9% yes 10.2% No Pursue vocational training in general practice 63% yes 37% No Vocational training in another area 30.4% yes 69.6% No Areas include: women s health, public health, dermatology, retrieval medicine, Indigenous health
How will it change the way you practice medicine? more conscious of the way GPs have to handle referrals and patients who return from hospitals. awareness of the resources available to GPs. I better understand now the wealth of knowledge about a patient that a GP has as opposed to the short term relationships we build with patients in the acute hospital settings. As a result, when I return back to hospital medicine this year I will better utilise GPs in managing a patient
How will it change the way you practice medicine? I think it changes the way I view general practice. I am excited by how broad and how different the role of the GP can be in different settings. I will feel much more comfortable and eager to talk to Indigenous patients about their communities, living situations, skin/family ties. I will be much more thorough in reviewing past histories, medications, specialist visits etc.
Best thing about the placement? Excellent learning experience. Learned more than I have during any other placement as a resident at the hospital. Learned good problem solving skills and enhanced my communication skills. Thank you for the experience and opportunity. I appreciated all the work the people at NTGPE have put into the programme. Finally have found an area of medicine that I am challenged by and enjoy!
Best thing about the placement? Meeting new people, realising that I do have the ability to work with limited resources and make good clinical decisions, associating with the Indigenous people Too many medical highlights. Culturally, sitting with senior elders for a session during a funeral ceremony will definitely be back in the territory, either for GP training or working as a GP. I'm sold!!!
Final words The experience is extremely valuable from a learning point of view. You get experience in many areas of medicine, both acute and chronic, adult and children. You have a good amount of autonomy, but are backed up with very good support and supervision. From a personal and professional point of view, this placement allows you to better see your patient's "real world" compared to the ruling medical world of a hospital, and makes you step up to the position of a valued member of a team with real responsibilities.
The feeder hospital See the program as a good recruitment tool Having something different to offer Assists in the understanding of their indigenous patients Ability to employ more doctors Provides them with a good overall understanding of what it is like out there
Supervisors Peer support A better understanding of how the hospital system works Opportunity to share their knowledge with the next generation of medico s Shared clinical learning Give something back to the field Hope to see them come back as a GPR and see how they have grown if they were a medical student
Clinics / Practices Assists with workload Another doctor to refer to in busy AMS Assistance with programs that sometimes suffer under the workload Breath of fresh air Benefits are huge just wish they could stay longer Prepares them for any career path providing a better understanding when treating Aboriginal patients in the hospital setting
NTGPE Vertical integration model Feeds into the GP training program Assists in the deliver of health outcomes to the remote areas of the NT Rewarding to see them come through as medical students, PGPPP, GPRs and back as medical educators or trainers
Conclusion NTGPE has continued to deliver a well supported PGPPP program with a focus on Indigenous Health Numbers have increased due to the experience we provide that is not always available in their own state or territory Has been a positive experience for all stakeholders Continue to grow our feeder hospital network