Name: Professor Karen Price, AMA Victoria
What drew you to medicine?
I had a people-first focus and I loved science and humanities, a consilience of interests ... the multiple options for a career were flexible and endless.
What is your favourite and least favourite part of general practice?
My favourite parts are generalism and the constant intellectual rigour combined with deep relational care of general practice. My least favourite part is watching political and commercial interests degrade an essential and noble profession. It is a blight upon our social contract for healthcare.
What is your top advocacy priority and why?
The percentage of health budget devoted to general practice needs to increase to at least 10 per cent given the enormous heavy lifting the community physician performs well outside of hospital care. Arguing over the same budget allocation is chasing crumbs.
What do you think is the biggest challenge for GPs at the moment?
Political populism and adverse lobbyists who understand self-interest but not a health system. The commercial determinants of health and the pernicious effects on all stakeholders. A professional practice is different from a usual business market. A lack of systems thinking.
