Friday 18 October 2024Health news3 minutes to read
Te Tai o Poutini West Coast is the first centre in New Zealand to receive accreditation to deliver Australian College of Rural and Remote Medicine (ACRRM) Training.
Receiving this accreditation is another important step in a 20-year journey towards becoming a ‘rural centre of excellence’ for training rural health professionals.
Health New Zealand | Te Whatu Ora West Coast Chief Medical Officer Brendan Marshall says, this accreditation is “a real feather in the cap” for rural generalist teams on the Coast.
ACRRM is the first medical college in the world dedicated to rural and remote practice.
Receiving accreditation means that as well as being an accredited training location, the West Coast can continue to develop its rural generalist model. A model that is focused on ensuring we are using the workforces we have, attracting staff who are keen to upskill and helping us achieve a sustainable, integrated healthcare system. Most importantly, it puts primary care at the heart of our health system and supports our people to stay well.
“ACRRM trains 500 doctors a year. If even two or three of them thought they’d like to move to the Coast and train, then I’m confident the lifestyle and career opportunities here will hook them for life. It worked for at least one Aussie!!”
Dr Marshall’s passion to work rurally was spurred during high school, when there was a doctor shortage in his home state of Queensland. After completing his training there and working in several remote places, including the Northern Territory and Papua New Guinea Dr Marshall eventually settled in Greymouth in 2013 where he has been an advocate for rural generalism ever since.
“The Rural Generalist model is fundamentally about creating a robust and sustainable workforce that opens opportunities to train the next generation.”
“Young health professionals can move here to train and that’s the key to building a dedicated and long-term primary care workforce across all areas of healthcare, including emergency, obstetrics and mental health, which is vital to maintaining the community’s access to services.”
Incoming ACRRM Board Director Dr John Hall says Queensland was the first place in Australia that the rural generalist model was introduced, “this had a significant impact, and the number of rural doctors has since doubled”.
Dr Hall’s visit to Greymouth completes the formal accreditation process which will mean the West Coast can now provide training to doctors who want to complete their core generalist training in a rural environment.
The training programme focuses on the development of broad knowledge, skills and attributes in primary, secondary and emergency care in a rural and remote environment allowing doctors to gain Rural Generalist skills across these areas.
“Rural communities tend to stay in rural areas if they know they’ve got good healthcare, it’s great New Zealand is building up its rural healthcare services and we support their drive to train more rural generalists.”
ENDS
Media contact: hnzmedia@tewhatuora.govt.nz
Photo: (L to R) Resident Medical Officer Dr Jordan Searle, West Coast Chief Medical Officer Dr Brendan Marshall and Incoming Australian College of Rural and Remote Medicine Board Director Dr John Hall.
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Page last updated: 18 October 2024
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