Remote Vocational Training Scheme - People Medical Consulting

WHAT IS RVTS?

The Remote Vocational Training Scheme (RVTS) is an approved training and 3GA program that offers GPs a pathway to Fellowship of the Royal Australian College of General Practitioners (RACGP) and/or the Australian College of Rural and Remote Medicine (ACRRM).

The program runs for four years and training is provided via distance education and remote supervision, allowing RVTS registrars to practice in some of Australia’s most remote locations while training for fellowship.

WHAT DO I LEARN IN RVTS?

Joining RVTS will allow you to sit either the RACGP or ACRRM Fellowship exams. The curriculum is designed to help doctors understand how remote medicine is different and how to manage working in rural locations.

Clinical skills

Essential emergency skills and knowledge (including trauma, obstetric skills, internal medicine, surgery, paediatrics, psychiatry, women in rural practice and retrieval medicine); and other essential skills and knowledge particular to the remote setting

The nature of remote communities

Issues such as support structures and family issues, professional boundary issues, confidentiality, social and cultural influences of mental health, home visiting protocols, and cultural frameworks.

Public health

Remote population health, public health infrastructure, disease control, remote environmental health, remote preventive medicine, relevant legislation, community roles, and the role of the remote doctor as community advocate and government medical officer.

Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander health

The health status of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people and comparison with the health status of non-Indigenous Australians; the diagnosis and management of the common diseases that affect Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people; the impact of history and current social, environmental, political and cultural factors on Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander health and the provision of culturally appropriate, accessible health services.

Management skills and professional networks

Effective practice management and integration with other health services, teamwork, support networks, media management in crises, information technology applications, and developing healthcare projects.

Self-care

Areas such as professional development strategies, self-analysis, working in a remote context and stress management.

Advanced skills training

Twelve months training is available to registrars in advanced skills curricula such as anaesthetics, obstetrics, emergency medicine, Aboriginal health, paediatrics, mental health, adult internal medicine, surgery, remote medicine, population health, and small rural town practice. Advanced skills training is a curriculum requirement for the FACRRM and FARGP. ACRRM Advanced Specialised Training Curricula are available on the ACRRM website.

HOW IS THIS TRAINING DELIVERED?

Training is provided via distance education and supervision is facilitated remotely. Program delivery is flexible and designed to meet a participant’s individual needs.

Education is delivered via:

Live weekly webinars: Registrars participate in weekly, 60-90-minute education sessions via webinar using the Citrix Gototraining platform.
Face-to-face workshops: Twice a year registrars meet at a central location for an intensive, five-day education workshop that covers topics best learnt face-to-face. There are opportunities for networking and socialising and families can travel with registrars.
Clinical teaching visits: An RVTS supervisor or experienced rural practitioner visits the registrar to sit in on consultations and provide feedback.
Remote supervision: Each registrar is allocated a supervisor who acts as a mentor, providing educational advice.

AM I ELIGIBLE?

RVTS has 2 streams- Remote and AMS.

The Remote stream requires doctors to work in an MMM4-7 location and the position must be providing continuing comprehensive whole-patient medical care to individuals, families and their communities.

The AMS Stream requires doctors to work for an Aboriginal Community Controlled Health Service in a Modified Monash Model MMM 2- 7 and the position must be providing continuing comprehensive whole-patient medical care to individuals, families and their communities.

RVTS is open for doctors who hold Limited (Area of Need), Provisional or General AHPRA Registration. For doctors with limited registration, the doctor must have been granted limited registration on or after 30 January 2018; AND The doctor must have successfully completed Australia Medical Council part 1 exam on the AMC Standard Pathway; AND The doctor must be at Level 3 or 4 supervision. Levels 1 & 2 are not eligible.

To be eligible, you must be working in an eligible location at the time of applying, and remain in that location throughout their training.

Applications are accepted from Australian citizens, permanent residents and temporary residents.