General Practice Specialty Profile
General practitioners (GPs) are the first port of call for patients entering the Australian health system. They provide primary continuing comprehensive medical care to individuals, families and their communities. They are responsible for the spectrum of prevention, diagnosis and treatment of a wide range of acute and chronic medical problems. The majority of patient problems are handled by a GP without requiring referral. Although specialist input into a patient’s problem is often sought, it is the GP who co-ordinates the holistic care of a patient. This may involve integration of opinions of multiple health practitioners, monitoring chronic diseases and their treatment, and assisting with the psychosocial impact of disease. GPs are also in a unique position to care for multiple members of a single family, and thus to appreciate the role of genetics and family dynamics in various illnesses.
General Practice Training Program
Training Program
Uniquely amongst medical disciplines, a government company rather than a medical college delivers general practice training. The RACGP develops and maintains standards for general practice training, which is delivered by Regional Training Providers (RTPs) in the form of the Australian... more
General Practice Case Study
Dr Marek Steiner
Name: Dr Marek Steiner
Career stage: Consultant
Location: Sydney, NSW
Medical Specialty: General Practice
What are some of the things you enjoy most about being in your area/specialty?
I love the personal interaction with patients – getting to know them and developing a longer term doctor-patient relationship. I’m interested in antenatal care, paediatrics, musculoskeletal medicine, preventative health, travel medicine and e-Health. General Practice is so wide that there are always areas to keep up your interest. I enjoy the small business aspects of general practice. Setting up a practice from scratch and building it from there. I have tried to make the practice as e-H...
What are some of the challenges of being in your specialty?
A GP needs a variety of personal and clinical skills. You never know what will be required and how much time you need to devote to an appointment. And you need to listen to patients because what they seem to be asking is not always the question that, deep down, they need an answer for. Opening my first (solo) practice was a bit daunting, there are financial risks, and you wonder if you’re going to be successful – but it’s worked out really well. ...
General Practice Workplace
The Workplace
General practitioners are responsible for all primary care in Australia. They encounter the range of adult and paediatric medical and surgical problems, in addition to obstetric, gynaecological, and psychiatric ailments. The majority of general practitioners work in private rooms, with... more
News Archive
- 21.03.11 | UPDATE: My Medical Career thanks the community
- 24.02.11 | Medical Graduates becoming ‘coffee cup interns’
- 25.01.11 | Indigenous doctor among nominee for Queensland's Australian of the Year nominee
- 02.12.10 | 20% Book Sale at Elsevier
- 24.11.10 | Attack of the marathon
- 22.11.10 | Anaesthetic training opportunities for rural and remote GPs
- 13.11.10 | University of Sydney's Poche Centre to host showcase for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander health initiatives
- 20.10.10 | 2011 internship campaign places record number of interns in NSW hospitals
- 20.10.10 | More doctors, but most are still in cities
- 15.10.10 | $900,000 teaching and learning centre will be established at St Vincent's Private Hospital in Lismore
- 15.10.10 | $5 million grant for medical training facility at Geelong, Victoria
- 15.10.10 | Training more doctors, nurses and health professionals
- 13.10.10 | Pay GPs $50k more to attract trainees
- 30.09.10 | Call for action on intern crisis
- 30.09.10 | Deans warn: No more new places, schools
Keep Informed!
Sponsored Links
Med Resources & Further Reading
Nelson Textbook of Pediatrics e-dition: Text with Continually Updated Online Reference, 18e
by By Robert M. Kliegman, MD, Professor and Chair, Department of Pediatrics, Medical College of Wisconsin, Milwaukee, WI; Richard E. Behrman, MD, Executi
For nearly three quarters of a century, Nelson Textbook of Pediatrics has been the world's most trusted resource for best approaches to pediatric care Read more
- Books Skin Disease, Diagnosis and Treatment, 2nd Edition
- Books 100 Challenging Spinal Pain Syndrome Cases, 2e
- Handbooks Australasian College of Dermatologists Training Program Handbook
- Books Evidence-Based Health Care and Public Health, How to Make Decisions About Health Services and Public Health, 3rd Edition
- Colleges The Royal Australasian College of Physicians - Australasian Faculty of Rehabilitation Medicine
- Websites Dementia Education Online
- Websites iSelect
- Books Imaging Atlas of Human Anatomy, 4th Edition
