An exciting year ahead in primary care
As the New Year commences, I hope you and your families had a happy and safe holiday season, removed from any of the terrible bushfires that have ravaged our eastern regions.
The devastation of the bushfires is deeply saddening and on behalf of all at Western Victoria PHN (WVPHN) I would like to extend condolences to the families who have lost loved ones or who have been injured as a result of the fires, and remorse for the wildlife, land and homes that have perished. In particular we must acknowledge the unprecedented loss of country, flora and fauna, and culture through these fires. Further, we acknowledge that this loss is different and profound in its own way for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people.
We will continue to support communities in the affected regions in any way we can and encourage you to find out more about the new MBS items now available to support responses to natural disaster-related trauma.
GP Refresher 2020
Registrations have opened for the next annual GP Refresher to be held on Saturday 14 March and Sunday 15 March 2020 at the Higher Mark Conference Centre – GMHBA Stadium, Geelong. The theme this year is Preventative Health Care.
The GP Refresher is one of our keynote events that brings general practitioners together over a two-day conference to hear prominent speakers on contemporary general practice and best-practice primary health care.
The event is an excellent way for GPs to expand their network and share their knowledge and experiences with their peers.
Register here or go to our website for more information.
Workforce Development
We are in the process of a recruiting a new Senior Manager – Workforce Development to drive our workforce support programs to better meet the needs of our primary care workforce. One such example is the Project ECHO Persistent Pain program.
SafeScript training
With the use of SafeScript becoming mandatory for GPs and pharmacists in Victoria from April 2020, it is crucial that all GPs and pharmacists understand how the online system works and how to use it.
SafeScript face-to-face training sessions for WVPHN are scheduled for 14 March (at the GP Refresher, Geelong), 18 March (Geelong) and 26 March (Ballarat). I urge clinicians and pharmacists to take advantage of these training opportunities to learn more about SafeScript.
Let’s make 2020 our biggest and best yet!
Dr Leanne Beagley
Chief Executive Officer