I’m Beth Allin, a GP in Grafton, NSW. I graduated from medical school in England in 2011 and moved to Australia in 2012 during the London Olympics. I completed my GP training in the North Coast and have been working in Grafton for nearly seven years. In general practice, my particular interests are in child and maternal health.
For the past couple of years, I have been doing some work in education for Healthy North Coast and am now thrilled to be joining the Workforce Planning and Prioritisation team. I am passionate about supporting general practice and helping prevent the escalating workforce shortage crisis.
About Workforce Planning and Prioritisation (WPP)
In response to known general practice workforce shortages, the Department of Health and Aged Care (DoHAC) has funded the establishment of the General Practice Workforce Planning and Prioritisation (WPP) Program.
The new national GP WPP program allows Healthy North Coast a voice to make recommendations to the GP Specialist Colleges — Royal Australian College of General Practice (RACGP) and the Australian College of Rural and Remote Medicine (ACRRM) — based on what communities and health professionals say regarding their health care needs and service accessibility, both now and into the future.
Healthy North Coast’s reporting will provide guidance to the DoHAC, RACGP and ACRRM in the selection and allocation processes for the registrars by providing regionally specific, evidence-based recommendations and advice, to inform the geographic distribution and placement of registrars with a focus on the current and future needs of the community and workforce.
WPP consumer engagement and activity:
Two reports have been submitted to the DoHAC, RACGP and ACRRM.
Healthy North Coast has contributed to capacity building by introducing these groups to HealthPathways and strengthening relationships with RACGP, ACRRM, rural training hubs and local universities.
Registrars have attended, learned and networked at Healthy North Coast’s education offerings, GP-Specialist evenings and Clinical Societies in recent months.
Primary Health Networks (PHNs) in ACT and NSW have conducted surveys to inform a national report recommending registrar distribution targets set by the DoHAC.
A Workforce Development webpage is currently being developed and, once published, will include information regarding the WPP program.
Healthy North Coast is currently collating community and health practitioner surveys for submission to the lead PHN, with the next report regarding Specialist Pathways to be undertaken from July.
Get in touch
We welcome community and health industry stakeholders to get in touch with our Workforce team if you would like to be involved or would like to know more: [email protected]