Australian Doctor has started a campaign to hold a petition to oppose the proposed $7 copayment for bulk billing GP visits. Please sign the petition to support primary healthcare in Australia.
http://gpsmakethedifference.com.au/sign-our-petition/
Tuesday, May 27, 2014
Saturday, May 24, 2014
#StopTheCoP
In the Federal Budget announced just over two weeks ago, the Abbott government has announced cuts in funding to hospitals and GPs, with an inclusion of $7 copayments for GP visits starting from next year.
GPs are the gatekeeper of the medical system in Australia. They are in the front line of preventative healthcare, and the forefront of prevention, intervention and screening. They do pap smear tests, blood pressure checks and screening for diabetes and high cholesterol, smoking, and excessive alcohol use, where cost effective lifestyle and pharmacological interventions are used to prevent morbidity and mortality.
However, it is known that people from a lower socioeconomic status are more likely to have poor health. The effect of this copayment will be fewer visits to the GP from people of lower socioeconomic backgrounds, which are likely to lead in an increase in the overall disease burden. Furthermore, there will be likely an increase in presentations to the emergency department for trivial matters, wasting the resources of the hospital where GPs could have provided appropriate care.
As such, the copayment is opposed by the peak bodies representing doctors in Australia. See what the AMA has to say, or the #StopTheCoP posts on twitter.
GPs are the gatekeeper of the medical system in Australia. They are in the front line of preventative healthcare, and the forefront of prevention, intervention and screening. They do pap smear tests, blood pressure checks and screening for diabetes and high cholesterol, smoking, and excessive alcohol use, where cost effective lifestyle and pharmacological interventions are used to prevent morbidity and mortality.
However, it is known that people from a lower socioeconomic status are more likely to have poor health. The effect of this copayment will be fewer visits to the GP from people of lower socioeconomic backgrounds, which are likely to lead in an increase in the overall disease burden. Furthermore, there will be likely an increase in presentations to the emergency department for trivial matters, wasting the resources of the hospital where GPs could have provided appropriate care.
As such, the copayment is opposed by the peak bodies representing doctors in Australia. See what the AMA has to say, or the #StopTheCoP posts on twitter.
Friday, May 16, 2014
GAMSAT 2014 results released!
The GAMSAT results for 2014 have been released today! Congratulations if you have done well, and commiserations if you have not done as well as you would have liked.
If I have tutored you this year, I would like to know how you went. Send me an email if you wish to let me know.
If I have tutored you this year, I would like to know how you went. Send me an email if you wish to let me know.
Saturday, May 10, 2014
[update] Aged care rotation over. GP rotation starting next week.
Yesterday on Friday was the last day of our aged care rotation. In total, there were three weeks of geriatric medicine, two weeks of palliative care, and one week of psychiatry of old age. I found geriatric medicine reasonably good and palliative care OK. However, as per the adult psychiatry rotation in last rotation, I was not very keen on psychiatry of old age.
The next rotation will be the GP rotation. I am looking forward it.
The next rotation will be the GP rotation. I am looking forward it.
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