Australian general practice at a fork in the road: which way forward?

Letters

Australian general practice at a fork in the road: which way forward?

MJA 2001; 175: 667

You fail to acknowledge there are two classes of doctors, as has been the case in Australia for decades — consultants (the princes), doing very well, and general practitioners (the paupers), struggling to survive.

You comment that there is "a new phenomenon . . . dispirited doctors". In Australia, consultants are certainly not dispirited (they have never had it so good). However, there are dispirited GPs, who are grouping together in corporations to solve their economic and social problems.

Where, Dr Van Der Weyden, have you been hiding? All of a sudden you would have us believe there is a fork in the road for GPs. In reality, there is no fork — just the steady downhill journey that has gone on for years. Instead of supporting and fighting for an increase in the insulting rates of rebate paid to GPs, you are critical of the very reasons GPs are entering the corporate structure.

The statement in your editorial that received the greatest hoots of laughter from my fellow GPs was the classic remark "second, there is the challenge of general practice research and education, which has received little attention in the corporatisation debate". Research has never received attention in general practice, and was certainly not a concern before the move to corporatisation. As you yourself have stated, GPs received a mere 1.6% of the National Health and Medical Research Council's research projects over the years 1996 to 2000. Certainly, such lack of funding has stifled what should have been a rich and flourishing research culture, but what has been done about it?

Percy S Rodgers
General Practitioner, 2/133 Wilson Street,
Brunswick, VIC 3056

1. Van Der Weyden MB. Australian general practice at a fork in the road: which way forward? [editorial]. Med J Aust 2001; 175: 62-63.