This project aims to provide support for CPD activities for rural Fellows and Members of RACMA in order to enhance their management skills and knowledge by group learning. Using a variety of modalities to improve access including face to face meetings in rural locations and via videoconferencing.
Target audience:
For more information, contact Dr Lee Gruner
Emergency Psychiatry and Consultation Liaison in Rural Settings: ATSI & Drug & Alcohol Stream
This project will provide rural psychiatrists and their selected medical colleagues with an opportunity to discuss clinical issues/situations relating to co-morbidity and Aboriginal mental health in case-based workshops with a sub-specialist panel. Outreach learning modes (video/phone conferencing, asynchronous web forum, consultation liaison) will be used to facilitate discussion and networking
Target audience:
For more information, contact The Royal Australian and New Zealand College of Psychiatrists
Western Australia Rural and Remote Psychiatrist Continued Professional Development Network
The primary target group for this project will be Western Australian Rural and Remote Psychiatrists. This project aims to;
- To identify and prioritise rural Western Australian psychiatrists’ areas of training need
- To decrease feelings of professional isolation for rural Western Australian psychiatrists
- To increase Rural Western Australian psychiatrists attendance of WA RANZCAP presentations
- To provide opportunities for rural psychiatrists to obtain CPD points via video conferencing.
Target audience:
For more information, contact The Royal Australian and New Zealand College of Psychiatrists
Risk Management Workshop Programme
A series of risk management workshops will take place, aimed at increasing the ability of specialists to mange medico-legal risk, apply risk management principles to improve patient care and reduce the risk of litigation. The program focuses on why patients sue, communication strategies to improve patient satisfaction and the consent process.
Target audience:
For more information, contact Alicia Eaton
Facilitating Audit and Peer Review for Isolated Procedural Specialists
In 2003, the Royal Australasian College of Surgeons, in partnership with the Royal Australian and New Zealand College of Ophthalmologists, successfully applied for the funding of a project entitled “Facilitating Audit and Peer Review for Isolated Procedural Specialists”. The extension of this project in 2004 has allowed workshops to be held in another eight regional centres over the course of the year. This project will continue the work of these two projects; however, the focus will shift to the organisation and attendance of peer review meetings in those centres that participated in this project in 2004, grouped regionally, and to provide training for potential facilitators.
Target audience:
For more information, contact Alicia Eaton
A regionally based CPD Program for General Surgeons in North Queensland
Fortnightly video-linked educational meetings will involve General Surgeons in Cairns, Townsville, Mackay, Mount Isa and Atherton. Content will be determined by the participants and will include topic presentations, case discussions, literature reviews, and focused audits. An annual regional surgeons’ conference will also be established as a venue for face-to-face interaction.
Target audience:
For more information, contact Dr Richard Turner
Dealing with Difficult Patients, and Work / Life Balance for Rural Specialists
A series of workshops consisting of two modules facilitated by the Cognitive Institute. The first module offers solution focused approaches to enhancing the effectiveness and ease of dealing with difficult patients and situations.
The second module addresses ways to discover a sustainable, healthy and enjoyable professional and personal life.
Workshop will be targeted to rural specialists located in Cairns, Orange, Bunbury, Darwin and Rockhampton with an expected 35 specialists participating.
Other potential beneficiaries include
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Risk managers
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Quality co-ordinators
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Medical Directors
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Chief Executive Officers
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Directors of Nursing
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Practice managers
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Colleagues
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Families, friends
Target audience:
For more information, contact Alicia Eaton
Delivering CPD to Rural Radiologists: Vic Branch Monthly Scientific Meetings
RANZCR’s existing SSRS Victorian Branch MSM program will be delivered by videoconference to RRs & the program of 8 meetings will be extended by an additional joint session with ASUM.
As in 2003 & 2004, Rural Radiologists & now also rurally-based members of ASUM will be invited to attend at our existing 29 sites & subject to technical constraints, at additional sites to be arranged.
More than 100 Rural Radiologists regularly attended SSRS-funded videoconferences of the previous RANZCR Victorian Branch MSM series in 2004 & late 2003.
This expanded project will involve delivery of CPD to up to 340 Rural Radiologists (RANZCR Fellows) & additionally, up to 200 other Rural Medical Specialists including Surgeons, Obstetricians & Gynaecologists, Cardiologists & experts in Internal Medicine who are members of ASUM.
In addition to RRs, Rural Ultrasonographers, Radiographers & Medical Radiation Technologists will also continue to attend the MSM series, as in previous years.
Target audience:
For more information, contact Pamela Taylor
Delivering CPD to Rural Radiologists by videoconferencing Case Reviews -The Alfred Hospital, Melb
This project is a continuation of the Alfred Hospital’s Radiology Department’s Monthly Case Review Meetings program enables participants to join in via videoconferencing. The aims of the projects are to;
- Provide information about current, state of the art & new diagnostic imaging, related treatment techniques in interactive mode, using video-conferencing
- Provide interesting and unusual case material incorporating joint presentations by Rural Radiologists and other Medical Specialists, employing videoconferencing as a modality for 2-way communication
- Record sessions and produce copies of presentations for later circulation
- Enable webstreaming of recorded content for CPD purposes in own time
Target audience:
For more information, contact Pamela Taylor
Diagnostic problems & clinical solutions: a joint CPD/Case Review
This joint program of the RANZCR & RACS, to be delivered nationally via videoconferencing, will be available to Rural Radiologists, Surgeons & their medical & associated colleagues monthly from 18th May 2005, with later sessions on 15th June, 6th & 27th July & 17th August.
This joint venture with RACS will match the needs of Rural Radiologists & Rural Surgeons for CPD sessions that foster ongoing contacts at the local level. The program also builds on the findings of RACS’s 2004 SSRS-funded program “Facilitating audit & peer review for isolated procedural specialists” & will incorporate methodologies from this project.
The program will comprise 5 sessions each of 2 hours duration, & provide information about current diagnostic imaging & surgical techniques for the care of cancer patients within a clinical audit framework. The first 2 sessions in the series will address Breast Cancer issues, the next 2 sessions will address Gastro-Intestinal Cancers & the final session, Lung Cancers.
The existing RANZCR-SSRS network of remote sites which take part in regular videoconferenced events will be the basis of the network & additional Expressions of Interest from Rural Radiologists & Rural Surgeons will determine the inclusion of new videoconference sites.
Target audience:
For more information, contact Pamela Taylor
Practice Visits: reviewing specialist practice to improve the safety and quality of care
A pilot of practice visits will be conducted in rural NSW in 2005. Practice visits provide collegial peer review of specialists within their work environment. This type of review consists of a preliminary surgical audit, patient satisfaction questionnaire, practice profile survey, observation of major and minor surgery, a peer visit with two outside O&G's, interviews with colleagues, and record review.
The outcome of the visit is for the specialist to gain an understanding of their performance/ competencies while gaining frank feedback about areas of risk/ weakness that could be addressed to improve patient care. Practice review offers detailed, in-depth professional development that is relevant to the context and setting of the specialist receiving the visit. The impact of this local CPD is comprehensive through the use of a large variety of data and investigation sources, while input into the outcome includes a variety of interested stakeholders.
An overview and summary of recommendations is made at the end of the practice visit. This is formalised through a letter sanctioned by the Committee.
Follow-up of the visitees is done 8-10 weeks after the visit to gauge whether recommendations have been acted upon.
Target audience:
For more information, contact Lyn Johnson
Perinatal Mortality and Morbidity Audit: Learning from adverse events to improve care
This project seeks to improve the audit, investigation and peer review skills of specialists who have been involved in perinatal adverse events ("near misses") that have resulted in a transfer to a neonatal intensive care unit or a perinatal death. By learning from these adverse events, clinicians can improve clinical and organisational practice.
Six to eight sites in provincial Queensland and Northern Territory will carry out retrospective audits with external clinicians to facilitate and critique the process.
By running a pilot of this project in 2004 we have streamlined the training, tools and process of the audit visits. We hope to use some of the already trained specialists to share and provide mentoring to other participants in the project.
The project consists of three components:
- Initial training and education for audit facilitators on how and what to audit after an adverse event; how to communicate and provide feedback to rural specialists
- Carrying out the audit on site with follow up confidential report
- Follow up of sites audited and of audit facilitators for feedback on the process and to gauge whether recommendations for practice have been implemented.
Target audience:
For more information, contact Lyn Johnson
Enabling Rural Dermatologists to Access Teaching Hospital Clinical Meetings Via CD-Rom
Teaching hospital clinical meetings are a principle method of CPD for metropolitan dermatologists, but have until recently been unavailable to rural Fellows without considerable travel and associated expense. This project allows rural dermatologists to access a number of these meetings at a time of their choosing via CD-Rom recording, with participants interacting via email and associated web forum.
Target audience:
For more information, contact Claudia Casson
Quality Use of Medicines - obtaining and assessing prescribing information for new drugs in Australia.
This pilot project is designed to promote the critical appraisal skills of Fellows in 2 related areas: interaction with the pharmaceutical industry; and obtaining and assessing prescribing information for drugs new listed on the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme.
The project is a component RACP’s commitment to orient its educational activities within the framework of the Quality Use of Medicines Strategy, a key component of the National Medicines Policy.
Target audience:
For more information, contact Mary Osborn
Northern Australia Community Acquired Pneumonia Clinical Practice Improvement Project
This is a joint initiative with the Royal Australasian College of Physicians (RACP) and the College of Emergency Medicine (ACEM).
This project seeks to improve the audit, investigation and peer review skills of specialists who have been involved in Community Acquired Pneumonia (CAP) within the northern Australia rural hospitals. By participating in the project clinicians can enhance clinical and organisational practice to improve care and service deliveries.
Target audience:
For more information, contact The Royal Australasian College of Physicians
Stroke Unit Care Practice Change Project
The Stroke Unit Care Practice Change Project is a joint initiative with The Royal Australasian College of Physicians (RACP) and The Royal Australian and New Zealand College of Radiologists (RANZCR), utilising a physician network, Australasian Stroke Unit Network. (ASUN) to support the initiative.
Building on the achievement of the SSRS ROAST project, this project will enable rural specialists to audit current stroke unit care practices and implement changes to improve clinical outcomes. Basing on ROAST methodology, monthly reviews and regular CPD workshops will support audit and practice change activities.
Target audience:
Related Document: Newsletter3.pdf
For more information, contact The Royal Australasian College of Physicians
Remote paediatric journal club
This project is a continuation of SSRS Remote Paediatric Journal Club, which ran in 2003 & 2004. The project involves monthly videoconferences linking the 3 above sites for review of journal articles, discussion of complex clinical cases, new therapeutic interventions and wider issues pertinent to remote and rural paediatric practice.
Target audience:
For more information, contact The Royal Australasian College of Physicians
Further Education and Training for Paediatricians and Advanced Trainees (FEAT)
This project is designed as an educational program involving rural and remote paediatric centres and provides professional development and ongoing education via videoconferencing technology for Paediatricians who work in rural centres who are unable to attending meetings in person.
The project is an interactive workshop format with the opportunity for interaction between rural participants and the panel who present the workshop. It allows rural Paediatricians to learn new information from tertiary specialists and to compare practice styles with each other and metropolitan Paediatricians. The project also acts to inform tertiary referral Paediatricians around the issues confronted by Paediatricians in rural centers
Target audience:
For more information, contact The Royal Australasian College of Physicians
A Project for Enhancing Professional Skills of Rural Physicians using Telemedicine
This project engages Telehealth in delivering the Victorian Continuing Education Workshop program which runs on a Saturday morning four times a year to remote locations in a number of states. Continuation of this program gives the opportunity for expansion into other states and the opportunity to continuously improve format and delivery as a learning experience.
Target audience:
For more information, contact The Royal Australasian College of Physicians
WHAM – Workplace and health assessment modules
The interactive web based module WHAM was developed by the Australasian Faculty of Occupational Medicine, after it was recognised that medical practitioners practising in rural and remote areas have fewer opportunities for supervised training in workplace and health assessments and this makes it difficult to ensure competencies in these areas are maintained.
This year AFOM aims to develope two further modules on;
- Asbestos risks to workers, enhanced by downloadable questionnaire and form templates. National video-conference workshops will initially supplement this material
- Best Practice Alternative Management of Occupational Soft Tissue Injury where conventional medical management has failed and
- And refinement of existing Workplace & Health Assessment Modules
The Faculty encourages all health professionals involved in workplace and health assessments as well as other regulating bodies to view the modules to ensure they are up to date with the latest information. This module can be used by employers and employees to gain an understanding of what is involved with Workplace Health Assessments.
Target audience:
For more information, contact The Australasian Faculty of Occupational Medicine
BEARS - Bringing Educational Activities to Rural/Rehabilitation Specialists
This is a continuation of the project 3.10 by AFRM as part of the Support Scheme for Rural Specialists. The project has to date been very successful in engaging rural and remote rehabilitation physicians in continuing education activities including regular Journal Club teleconferences, skills workshops and Practice Quality Reviews (PQR’s).
The project has improved the access of a particularly isolated group of specialists to educational activities. Before the SSRS was introduced these specialists did not have the opportunity to participate in activities or have frequent contact with peers in similar rural and remote areas.
The project has been designed to provide access to mix of educational and support activity combinations that cater to the particular requirements of rehabilitation physicians who require a broad range of clinical, management and teaching skills.
Target audience:
For more information, contact The Australasian Faculty of Rehabilitation Medicine
This course combines local instructor training with the delivery of medium-fidelity simulation-based courses for rural specialists at two previously visited sites (Darwin and Launceston). The program will include:
- Pre-course reading and exercises to introduce the concepts of simulation training to novice instructors
- A 2-day instructor course using hands-on experience
- 3 single-day courses which provide actual training to multidisciplinary teams of rural specialists
- Participation by novice instructors in providing these courses in conjunction with instructors from Southern Health Simulation and Skills Centre
- Feedback to novice instructors on performance and a mechanism for ongoing development and support.
Target audience:
For more information, contact Jill Humphreys
Emergency Medicine and Crisis Management using Medical Simulation for Rural Practice
To provide rural emergency physicians with cross domain, team-based learning opportunities using medical simulation, incorporating clinical knowledge, procedural skills and Crisis Resource management skills and behaviours.
Target audience:
For more information, contact Australasian College for Emergency Medicine
