Update: Australian Association for Academic General Practice

The Australian Association for Academic General Practice (AAAGP) is a representative body for people undertaking teaching and research in general practice. AAAGP aims to promote and develop the discipline of general practice by:

• Representing academic general practice at State and National levels
• Promoting research and teaching in general practice
• Providing a forum for exchange of information and ideas via our active email list, website, dinners, research meetings and newsletters
• Fostering and supporting career development in academic general practice via our travelling fellowship and awards for public presentations
• Awarding the Bridges-Webb medal for excellence within our membership.

The ‘for' in our title is a deliberate ploy as we seek to represent all who research or teach in the general practice environment and not just general practitioners. Readers of this newsletter will probably know that we co-sponsor the GP & PHC Research Conference with DoHA, PHC RIS and APHCRI but we are active in other ways. Examples of the Association's recent work include:

• Being instrumental with the General Practice Education and Training (GPET) in fostering the GP Education Summit held in Melbourne seeking ways of addressing the large increase in the intake in medical students and its likely effects in general practice, for example the promotion of the development of Community-based Clinical Schools.
• Lobbying for the development of a Medicare item number that rewards medical practitioners for teaching medical students in their practices and linking this to performance indicators of quality of teaching.
• Seeking a practice based payment for practices undertaking research of national significance (ie. research that is funded by a body listed on the Australian Competitive Grants Register).
• The development of the Practice-based Research Network, a sustainable, effective primary care research infrastructure and a research community that can develop and conduct research that will make a difference to the primary health care system and the health of Australians.
• Supporting the retention and expansion of the PHCRED Strategy.

If you are interested in the organisation and its activities please visit our website <http://www.aaagp.org>.

Mark Nelson
President AAAGP
E: mrnelson@utas.edu.au