Training for rural family practice in australia

Background: Rural general practice in Australia is a challenging clinical discipline that requires specific training. Following a period that saw numbers and skill levels of rural doctors decline, government and professional organizations united to develop a training program that prepares doctors specifically for rural practice. Summary: This program reflects developments reported in the career choice and education literature, has a curriculum determined by needs analyses, and is delivered predominantly in nonurban centers under the guidance of rural medical educators. Although there is national coordination, different implementation models are being developed in different states to accommodate regional needs. Conclusions: The vertically integrated and totally nonmetropolitan approach of the North Queensland rural training program is one of the more successful models. This article reviews the early progress toward achieving the goal of improving the rural workforce and discusses probable future developments.