The Royal New Zealand College of General Practitioners

The review aims to promote general practice as a career choice among medical students and junior doctors and is likely to see more cross-over of training and working between hospitals and the community. Announcing the collaboration, Chair of Health Workforce New Zealand, Professor Des Gorman, said: “This is a very significant undertaking – one that will lay the foundation for a sustainable general practitioner workforce for many years.  I am delighted that Health Workforce New Zealand, the College and the Council have agreed to collaborate in this work. By working on the strengths of the existing GP training programme, especially by linking it with the training of doctors who traditionally work in hospital settings, we expect to attract more graduates to a career in general practice.”

Co-signatories to the agreement with Professor Gorman were Dr Harry Pert, President of the RNZCGP (which will lead the educational development) and Dr John Adams, Chair of the Medical Council of New Zealand. Dr Pert said: “New Zealand GPs already undergo extensive vocational training to prepare them for a role that is increasingly diverse and demanding. We need to continue to modernise our medical education provision to ensure it meets the needs of the profession, patients and the public. We must ensure that we offer attractive and rewarding careers in general practice and that the education GPs receive offers the right mix of flexibility, skills training and opportunities for personal development.”

The MOU can be read below.