Better health promised by Govt for rural , regional and remote Aust
The Australian Government has confirmed its determination to improve the health of rural, regional and remote communities, during a roundtable meeting with health professionals and consumers.
The Minister for Health and Ageing, Nicola Roxon, told the roundtable, convened by the Rural Doctors Association of Australia (RDAA), that an audit of health workforce shortages in rural areas would be complete by the end of February.
Fourteen organisations representing rural health professionals and consumers attended the meeting at Parliament House in Canberra. As well as the RDAA they included the Australian Nursing Federation, National Aboriginal Community Controlled Health Organisations, the Australian College of Rural and Remote Medicine, and Australian Rural Nurses and Midwives.
“It’s a sign of this Government’s commitment on this issue that the audit was ordered by the Prime Minister within the first fortnight of the Government being formed,” Ms Roxon said.
“I’m now hopeful that my department can provide me with the results, and accurate information about the extent of the problem, by the end of this month.
“In the meantime, this roundtable has enabled me to talk with people who know first hand about the under-supply of health services outside our major centres.”
Ms Roxon said the Government was working to implement its election commitments, including the proposed $220 million GP Super Clinics in communities with poor access to primary health services, many of which are in rural and regional areas.
The Government is also working with the states and territories to reduce waiting lists for elective surgery and to provide 10,000 extra nurses.
The Government’s National Health and Hospitals Reform Commission will be asked to explicitly identify a long-term plan for improving rural health services.
The Government’s other commitments include funding for new clinics, services and health infrastructure in individual rural centres, and a new program to improve the health of Indigenous children.
Specific rural workforce commitments include:
· $2.5 million to double the number of John Flynn scholarships available to undergraduate medical students to undertake placements in rural and remote medical practices
· $6 million to support the Specialist Obstetrician Locum Scheme and expand it to provide support to GP proceduralists
· $2.5 million to establish a rural and remote clinical placement scheme for allied health students
· $9 million to support specialists delivering outreach services to rural and remote areas through additional funding to the Medical Specialists Outreach Assistance Program.
“The Government will invest in rural health to make sure families in rural, regional and remote Australia get the health services they need and deserve,” Ms Roxon said.
