Australia is a country that provides great scope for medical professionals, including General Practitioners (GPs). The demand for GPs in Australia is constantly on the rise, which is why it is essential that you know the top trends for General Practitioners in Australia in 2023. This information will help you know what is required to stay ahead of the game.

General Practitioners: A Critical workforce

General practice is the core of the Australian healthcare system. Therefore, General Practitioners are the backbone of this system. There needs to be an adequate supply and demand of GPs across all regions in Australia, to ensure that their services are provided to patients from all around. According to a model developed by Deloitte Access Economics, a shortfall of 9,289 GPs is expected by 2023 relative to demand. This is estimated to reach 11,392 by 2032. This shows how much demand GPs have and are expected to have in the future in Australia.

How the role of GPs has evolved over the recent years

The Australian government has implemented several policies related to the work supply of GPs to meet the demand. Focus has also been put on the distribution of GPs across all states and suburbs in Australia. This is especially true in terms of providing access to quality healthcare in rural and remote regions.

During the period of 2020-21, there were 38,388 GPs in Australia, which comprised 30,379 (79.1%) VR-GPs, 2,954 (7.7%) non-VR GPs, and 5,055 (13.2%) GP trainees. A major proportion of around 45% of GPs are IMGs, a proportion which has been steadily increasing recently. The GP workforce in rural, remote, and regional areas is particularly reliant on IMGs, as migrant doctors are often used to fill workforce shortages in these areas. However, the proportion of GPs working outside of major cities continues to decline.

Major policies impacting the GP workforce

Here is an outlook of the major policies that impacted the GP workforce throughout the past few years.

2018: A strong rural health strategy was implemented with the aim of building a high-quality and sustainable health workforce in remote and rural regions.

2019: New health workforce classification for GPs was implemented to work in remote and rural areas. These were called Distribution Priority Areas (DPAs).

2020: A Bonded Medical Program was put in place so that medical graduates are required to work in rural and remote areas 3 years after graduation.

2021: National Medical Workforce Strategy 2021-31 was implemented to ensure the distribution of the medical workforce nationally.

2021: Provision of General Practitioners and related primary health services to remote and rural areas, and out of metropolitan regions.

2022: John Flynn Prevocational Doctor Program that is aimed at building capacity for the next generation of doctors.

The supply of GPs in Australia

General Practitioners were the most common medical professionals seen in 2020-21. More than 83.1% of Australians had visited a GP within the previous year. In 2020-21, there were 38,388 GPs in Australia, comprised of 30,379 (79.1%) VR-GPs, 2,954 (7.7%) non-VR GPs, and 5,055 (13.2%) GP trainees. Most of the GPs are non-referred attendances GP/VR-GPs (79.9%), followed by non-referred attendances (enhanced primary care) (12.9%), operations (3.0%), and non-referred attendances other (2.9%).

Geographical redistribution of the GP workforce

A major portion of the GP population in Australia was focused on metropolitan areas. Remote, regional, and rural areas were in demand of GPs as numbers were declining. However, the Australian government implemented policies to uplift the quality of healthcare services in rural and remote areas. As a result, the number of doctors working outside of metropolitan cities grew faster than the number of doctors working within metropolitan cities. In terms of states, the number of GPs in the Northern Territory has been declining since 2017. During the 2019-20 period, Western Australia, New South Wales, South Australia, and the Australian Capital Territory all experienced a decrease in the number of GPs.

The demand for GPs in Australia

 The demand for GPs in Australia is primarily due to the following factors:

Population growth

Australia has one of the fastest-growing populations among developed countries. However, there has been a slight decline due to COVID-19. The country’s population is expected to grow by about 22% between 2022 and 2041. This population growth has impacted both rural, remote, regional, and metro areas.

The aging population

Australia has a large and growing elderly population with 16% of the population aged 65. This is expected to grow to around 22% by 2066. Australia ranks the highest in the world in terms of life expectancy.

Chronic conditions

 Growth in the aging population has also led to increased prevalence of chronic conditions. This situation naturally increases the demand for GPs that need to treat such conditions.

Top Trends in General Practice

The following are the top trends in general practice that are also driving Australia’s healthcare sector in 2023. GPs should be aware of these trends to stay ahead in their professional life.

Improvements in healthcare technology

The healthcare industry is constantly seeing improvements, especially with the integration of technology. The rise of virtual reality, artificial intelligence, and wearable medical technology, has paved the way for better monitoring of patients and improved health outcomes. GPs are also using more of the existing technologies like cloud clinical software and electronic medical records.

More remote health services

Remote health monitoring and other health services like telehealth and e-Prescribing have risen in healthcare services. GPs are required to adapt to such technology to keep up with the latest trends in the healthcare sector.

Significant investment in patient experience

Patient-care centric is a top trend in healthcare and expectations are evolving as patients get used to having more convenient, sophisticated, transparent, affordable, and personalized services. Patients are allowed to self-serve and book appointments online, making it a much simpler process for them.

Digital solutions for aging population

The aging population is on the rise in Australia and the latest trends aim at making life easier for them by providing improved access to various healthcare technological services. These digital solutions in the healthcare sector include wearable devices and smart modular housing that can provide the biggest chances to revolutionize aged care in 2023 and beyond.

Are all ready for change?

All signs suggest that general practice in Australia is expected to undergo a major upheaval. It’s much more of a worldwide trend in response to the rise of chronic diseases and major cost cutouts. In light of such changes and trends in general practice in Australia, GPs are expected to know what these trends are to stay ahead of them.

The changes are happening now and are expected to continue for several years ahead. The Australian healthcare sector is continuously looking to adapt to new changes to provide improved healthcare services to its citizens.

As a reputed global healthcare recruitment agency, Medfuture is constantly on the lookout for qualified, skilled, and experienced GPs that can uplift Australia’s healthcare sector. We have a strong network of GPs and medical professionals and are constantly on the lookout for more talented professionals to uplift the healthcare industry. Here’s a list of the latest GP jobs in Australia with high salaries and fringe benefits.