In February 2024, the ONRHC and RACS held a National Rural Surgeons' Training and Retention Workshop. Chaired by Professor Brendan Murphy AC, this workshop aimed to understand:
- what affects increasing rural surgical training across Australia
- what actions will address any barriers.
Representatives from state and territory health departments, members from medical colleges, and other medical workforce experts attended.
The workshop was a major milestone in carrying out the Royal Australasian College of Surgeon's Rural Health Equity Strategic Action Plan. It reinforced the health sector's shared commitment to:
- improving and increasing rural surgical training
- surgeon workforce retention in rural and remote communities.
This is critical for bridging the health equity gap for rural communities.
The workshop also supported the Flexible Approaches to Training in Expanded Settings Rural Training Models project. Several specialist medical colleges are currently leading this project.
Read the summary and outcomes paper from the workshop.
