Tasmanian Rural Generalist Pathway Newsletter Edition 33 (April/May 2021)

Tasmanian Rural Generalist Program

In This Edition:

  • From the Director – Tas Rural Health Conference 2021
  • Tasmanian Rural Health Conference 2022
  • RDAT Awards 2021
  • RG Advanced Skills positions for 2021-2022
  • New Regional Medical Training Hub website for specialist-in-training
  • Psychiatry Interest Forum
  • TRGP update on structure and governance

From the DirectorDr Peter Arvier

Welcome to our post-conference Newsletter!

Many of you would have participated in the 2021 Tasmanian Rural Health Conference back in March which was a smaller one day ‘virtual’ meeting to ensure we would not have the disappointment of having to again cancel the entire event if there were ongoing COVID concerns.  Fortunately, the corona virus stayed away from Tasmania and the one-day event went well with only a few minor glitches.  We had over 100 people register for the conference and it was a strange feeling talking to a largely empty conference room and not being able to see all those ‘Zooming’ in from around the state.  We even managed a small dinner at Bayviews with some of the recipients of the RDAT awards for 2021.

Nevertheless, the experience of doing this has made us confident we could still run a larger virtual event if there were new or ongoing travel and social distancing restrictions in the future.  Many thanks to Sharee Taylor and Clinton Webber for all their ‘behind the scenes’ work for the success of the day.

Feedback on the program was overwhelmingly positive.  In particular, presentations and discussions on the Future of Rural Health (Prof Paul Worley), Women in the Workforce (Amy Neilson, Kim Dobromilsky, Telena Kerkham), Climate Change and Health (Sharon Campbell, Chester James-Smith), and Rural Generalists in Humanitarian work (Amy Neilson) touched many people for the inspiration, reflection and vision for the future.

For those who had registered for the conference but were unable to attend a particular session, a recording of all the proceedings is available by contacting Sharee via the email tasruralhealthconference@health.tas.gov.au

Dr Peter Arvier – Director, Rural Pathways


Tasmanian Rural Health Conference 2022

Next year’s conference will hopefully be face-to-face, but we plan to have at least some of the proceedings recorded for those who can’t make it.

The location will be Launceston and we are currently looking at venue options as numbers grow.  The tentative dates are 19-20 March 2022 but we will confirm this in the near future.

Expect the meeting to have an interesting mix of presentations, panel discussions, clinical updates, hands on workshops as well as re-visiting some of the important messages and evolving changes in rural practice that were highlighted in the 2021 conference.

Expect some great social opportunities for all that important networking and collegiality.

As the program takes shape, we’ll be putting out updates in this newsletter and on the TRHC website;  Tasmanian Rural Medical Generalist Pathway Tasmania

Join us next year in Launceston.  Tasmanian rural Health Conference 2022, 19-20 March (to be confirmed).  A join initiative of the Tasmanian Rural Generalist Pathway (Coordination Unit) and the Rural Doctors Association of Tasmania.  Tas.RuralHealthConference@health.tas.gov.au


Rural Doctors Association of Tasmania (RDAT) 2021 Awards

At the Tasmanian Rural Health Conference, RDAT announced the recipients of the Rural Doctor, Rural doctor-in-training, and Rural medical student awards for 2021.

Warm congratulations to Dr Camilla Byrne and Dr Andrew Grove from Swansea (RDAT Doctors of the Year 2021, Dr Norhalisa (Lisa) Termidzi (RDAT Doctor-in-Training Award 2021); and Niamh Crocker (RDAT Medical Student Award 2021)

“Camilla and Andrew have been the sole GPs in Swansea for 17 years and are known for their high standards of care and their amazing support of medical student teaching in Tasmania” RDAT President, Dr Eve Merfield, said.

“They run a general practice, are on-call 24/7 for the hospital urgent care centre and use their Accident & Emergency skills regularly as the nearest major hospital is two hours away. They also look after patients in the 5 acute beds and 55 nursing home beds of the local aged care centre, and they support rural GP registrar training and medical student placements. “They are now fundraising to build more consulting space in their community-owned practice, which will benefit not only their patients but also the many medical students who train with them. “Their ambition is to improve their already excellent practice by accommodating visiting specialists and allied health workers, and they are also keen to train more junior doctors and/or GP registrars in Swansea – this will benefit the local community as well as increasing the capacity of rural medical training in Tasmania. “Camilla and Andrew have raised their children on Tasmania’s east coast and have given enormously to their community”.

Dr Andrew Groves and Dr Camilla Byrnes                        Dr Norhalisa Termidzi                   Niamh Crocker


North West Advanced / Additional Skills RG Training Positions for 2021- 2022

In Adult Internal Medicine, there are two Medical Registrar positions which are accredited for AST training.  These positions will share Medical Registrar training and clinical responsibilities with the other medical registrars in the northwest.  For further information contact either Dr Rob Fassett or Dr Shanth Dewage in the General Medical Unit or email the RG office at tasrural.pathways@health.tas.gov.au

There will be a new Palliative Care registrar position which will include training and clinical responsibilities with the North West Palliative Care team in the community, aged care and inpatient Palliative Care at the Mersey Community Hospital.  Clinical responsibilities will be shared with the existing Palliative Care registrar.

In addition, this position will also include teaching and project activities with the University of Tasmania, Rural Clinical School.  For further information, contact Palliative Care consultant Dr Rosemary Ramsay at rosemary.ramsay@ths.tas.gov.au or Dr Maxine Glanger at maxine.glanger@ths.health.tas.gov.au


New Regional Medical Training WebsiteRegional Medical Training

Medical students and junior doctors seeking to train and work as specialists (non GP) in clinical disciplines in southern regional Australia will soon have easy access to information about the requirements of training programs, the accredited training rotations that are available, and the benefits of training in regional towns through a new website being launched on 28th April.

The Regional Medical Training website is the initiative of seven Regional Training Hubs (Hubs) across Tasmania, Victoria, South Australia, and New South Wales. The Hubs are funded by the Commonwealth Government to expand and promote opportunities for postgraduate medical training in regional Australia.

The website also provides stories from doctors currently enjoying training and working across this wide and diverse region along with upcoming events, useful resources and contacts for help in planning a training pathway. It will be expanded in coming months to include more specialist training pathways and an interactive map.

Further information is also available from Sarah Jordan, Project Manager for the Tasmanian Regional Training Hub at email sarah.jordan@utas.edu.au


Interested in further training in Mental Health and Psychiatry?

Psychiatry Interest Forum - Information and events for medical students and doctors interested in psychiatry and mental health.

Join the RANZCP’s Psychiatry Interest Forum (PIF) and stay in the loop with the College’s activities and opportunities. As a member of the PIF you will receive a range of free benefits including:

  • invitations to educational events, including lectures, workshops and conferences;pif (Psychiatry Interest Forum)
  • career guidance in psychiatry and its subspecialties through seminars and networking with RANZCP Fellows and trainees;
  • invitations to participate in RANZCP awards, prizes and grants around promotion, research or advocacy in mental health;
  • access to RANZCP e-learning resources;
  • e-newsletters to keep up to date with RANZCP activities.

Registration is free: simply complete the online application form:

Apply now – for medical students Apply now – for medical practitioners

Who can join?

To join the PIF, you must:

  • be enrolled in an undergraduate or graduate medical course approved by an Australian or New Zealand medical school accredited by the Australian Medical Council or Medical Council of New Zealand, or
  • be registered as a medical practitioner with the Australian Health Practitioner Regulation Agency or the Medical Council of New Zealand.

RTRGP update on Structure and Governance

The Tasmanian Rural Generalist Pathway is now being funded under a new agreement from the Australian Government which will run until mid-2023.  The day-to-day activities of the TRGP will be managed by the TRGP Coordination Unit and a new governance structure has been put in place which sees the TRGP sitting under the ‘stewardship’ of the Centre for Antarctic, Remote and Maritime Medicine (CARMM) which is a collaboration between the Tasmanian Government, the Australian Antarctic Program, the Menzies Institute for Medical Research, and the University of Tasmania.

The TRGP will also have a large Stakeholder Collaboration representing the GP Colleges, Training Providers, as well as other government and non-government organisations and stakeholders. The Stakeholder Collaboration will provide input to the TRGP through a variety of smaller ‘Action Groups’ that focus on particular issues reflecting the interest and expertise of those individuals and organisations.  In particular, students and doctors-in-training will have a voice within this structure through the Registrar representative (Dr Aaron Hawkins), the RDAT representative (Dr Ben Dodds) and the RUSTICA representative (Chelsea Nunn).

The first full meeting of the Collaborative will take place in June this year.


Rural Doctors Associate of Australia (RDAA) SurveyRural Doctors Association of Australia

The RDAA is inviting junior doctors and medical students to add their voices to those who have already completed the rural medical careers survey – we want to hear what has influenced you, what are the barriers, and where you get your training/career advice.

Click here to complete Rural Medical Training and Career Advice (Survey Monkey)

For a couple of minutes of your time you will go into the grand prize #DestinationRural draw to win airfares, accommodation and conference registration to attend RMA21 in Perth 20-23 October 2021.


Have you completed your FACRRM or FARGP in Tasmania?

Don’t forget to apply for your Tasmanian Rural Generalist Pathway Certificate of Completion


Current Vacancies

For THS Registrar Recruitment and other THS/DoH jobs, please visit Jobs Tas

For GP registrar placements through GPTT, refer to the GPTT placement process information

For GP vacancies, please visit HRPlus


Events –2021

Check out the Tasmanian Rural Generalist Pathway calendar for events of interest to rural practitioners.

Email rural.pathways@health.tas.gov.au to have your event included in the calendar.


This project is funded by the Australian Government through the National Partnership Agreement on Improving Health Services in Tasmania.