WORLD ORGANISATION OF FAMILY DOCTORS

<div align="center"><font face="Arial">POLICY</font><br></div> <div align="center"><font face="Arial">on</font><br></div> <div align="center"><font face="Arial">RURAL PRACTICE AND RURAL HEALTH</font><br></div> <div align="center"><br></div> <div align="center"><br></div> <div align="center"><br></div> <div align="center"><font face="Arial">2001</font><br></div> <div align="center"><br></div> <div align="center"><br></div> <div align="center"><br></div> <div align="center"><font face="Arial">WONCA Working Party on Rural Practice</font><br></div> <div align="center"><br></div> <div align="center"><font face="Arial">World Organisation of Family Doctors</font><br></div> <div><br></div> <div><font face="Arial" size="2">This work is copyright. Apart from any use as permitted under the Copyright Act 1968, no part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, without the prior written permission of the copyright holder.</font><br></div> <div><br></div> <div><font face="Arial" size="2">First Published 1998</font><br><font face="Arial" size="2">Second Edition 2001</font><br></div> <div><br></div> <div><font face="Arial" size="2">© World Organization of Family Doctors (WONCA) 1998, 2001</font><br></div> <div><br></div> <div><font face="Arial" size="2">Published by:</font><br></div> <div><font face="Arial" size="2">Monash University School of Rural Health</font><br><font face="Arial" size="2">PO Box 424</font><br><font face="Arial" size="2">Traralgon Victoria 3844</font><br><font face="Arial" size="2">Ph: (03) 5173 8181</font><br><font face="Arial" size="2">Fax: (03) 5173 8182</font><br><font face="Arial" size="2">E-mail: rural.health@med.monash.edu.au</font><br></div> <div><br></div> <div><font face="Arial" size="2">ISBN: 0 7326 0959 3</font><br></div> <div><br></div> <div><font face="Arial" size="2">Suggested citation:</font><br></div> <div><font face="Arial" size="2">WONCA Working Party on Rural Practice (2002) <i>Policy on Rural Practice and Rural Health,</i> Monash University School of Rural Health; Traralgon, Vic.</font><br></div> <div><br></div> <div><font face="Arial" size="2">Editorial Group for the Policy on Rural Practice and Rural Health includes:</font><br><font face="Arial" size="2">Dr Bruce Chater (Editor)</font><br><font face="Arial" size="2">Dr Ian Couper</font><br><font face="Arial" size="2">Dr John Macleod</font><br><font face="Arial" size="2">Dr Neethea Naidoo</font><br><font face="Arial" size="2">Dr M.K. Rajakuma</font><br><font face="Arial" size="2">Dr Steve Reid</font><br><font face="Arial" size="2">Dr Roger Rosenblatt</font><br><font face="Arial" size="2">Dr Jim Rourke</font><br><font face="Arial" size="2">Professor Roger Strasser</font><br><font face="Arial">Ms Jo Wainer</font><br><br></div> <div><font face="Arial" size="2">Cover Design & Photographs: Mr Steve Kirkbright</font><br></div> <div><font face="Arial" size="2">Compositor: Ms Paula Robinson, Ms Elaine Evans</font><br></div> <div><font face="Arial" size="5"><b>Preface to 2<sup>nd</sup> Edition</b></font><br></div> <div><br></div> <div><font face="Arial" size="2">The WONCA Policy on rural Practice and Rural Health is a living document. It derives from the process of recommendation formulation that has been integral to Rural Health conferences since the first WONCA World Conference on Rural Medicine in Shanghai in 1996. The recommendations from that conference, after another iteration through the Durban conference, became the WONCA Policy on Rural Practice and Rural Health, endorsed by WONCA Executive at Kuching in 1999.</font><br></div> <div><font face="Arial" size="2">The policy underwent another reiteration in Calgary. During the conference, recommendations and endorsements were gathered from the sessions. At the final plenary the conference was presented with the living document for discussion and reiteration. The revised document then went to the WONCA Working Party on Rural Practice and subsequently the 2001 Durban session of WONCA Council where it was endorsed.</font><br></div> <div><font face="Arial" size="2">The policy, while continuing unchanged in many aspects, does contain significant additions in the areas of:</font><br></div> <ul> <li><font size="2"></font><font face="Arial" size="2">Cultural awareness</font></li> <li><font size="2"></font><font face="Arial" size="2">Sharing educational resources worldwide</font></li> <li><font size="2"></font><font face="Arial" size="2">Increasing the streamlining, coordination and scope of procedural training</font></li> <li><font size="2"></font><font face="Arial" size="2">Practical support for rural training</font></li> <li><font size="2"></font><font face="Arial" size="2">Reskilling of doctor and spouse</font></li> <li><font size="2"></font><font face="Arial" size="2">Locally deliverable team training</font></li> <li><font size="2"></font><font face="Arial" size="2">Effective incentives for rural practice </font></li> <li><font size="2"></font><font face="Arial" size="2">Medical migration and its effects</font></li> <li><font size="2"></font><font face="Arial" size="2">Coping with violence in rural practice</font></li> <li><font size="2"></font><font face="Arial" size="2">Issues for women in rural practice</font></li> <li><font size="2"></font><font face="Arial" size="2">Aged care</font></li> <li><font size="2"></font><font face="Arial" size="2">Disability</font></li> <li><font size="2"></font><font face="Arial" size="2">Supporting rural health teams</font></li> <li><font size="2"></font><font face="Arial" size="2">Appropriate computerised practice </font></li> <li><font size="2"></font><font face="Arial" size="2">Healthy community values</font></li> <li><font size="2"></font><font face="Arial" size="2">Community orientated research</font></li> <li><font size="2"></font><font face="Arial" size="2">The effects of forced migration</font></li> <li><font size="2"></font><font face="Arial" size="2">Coordinated global approaches to rural disease</font></li> <li><font size="2"></font><font face="Arial" size="2">Proposals for a WHO Collaborating Centre for Rural Health and a WONCA rural health advisory unit</font></li> <li><font size="2"></font><font face="Arial" size="2">Taking a positive view of rural practice</font></li></ul><div><font face="Arial" size="2">On behalf of the WONCA Working Party on Rural Practice, I would commend the document to you as working document to stimulate your thoughts, whether you be a rural doctor, administrator, academic or consumer. We hope that it will assist you in improving the health of all rural people.</font><br></div> <div><font face="Arial" size="2"><img height="37" width="136" src="rural_practice_200100.png" alt="rural_practice_200100.png" border="0" ></font><br></div> <div><font face="Arial" size="2">Dr Bruce Chater</font><br><font face="Arial" size="2">Editor</font><br><font face="Arial" size="2">On Behalf of the WONCA Working Party on Rural Practice</font><br></div> <div><font face="Arial" size="5"><b>Editorial</b></font><br></div> <div><font face="Arial" size="2">In presenting this Policy the editorial group has been conscious of the contribution of many to this process. Our thanks go to particularly the WONCA Working Party on Rural Practice and the participants in the First International Conference on Rural practice in Shanghai/Fengxian County China in 1996 and the Second World Rural Health Congress in Durban South Africa in 1997. Special mention should be given to Jo Wainer, Steve Kirkbright, Paula Robinson and Elaine Evans at Monash University Centre for Rural Health, Australia, for their editorial and presentation skills.</font><br></div> <div><font face="Arial" size="2">In developing this document we were aware of the rural doctor focus of these recommendations. We have endeavoured to take into account the interests and contributions of all health workers. The conference at Durban expressed these sentiments succinctly as:</font><br></div> <ul> <li><font size="2"></font><font face="Arial" size="2">The doctor alone is not the answer to the problems of rural health.</font></li> <li><font size="2"></font><font face="Arial" size="2">There is a need for the development and support of health teams with diverse skills and including health workers and community members.</font></li> <li><font size="2"></font><font face="Arial" size="2">We cannot speak on behalf of other health professionals but wish to join with other health professionals in partnership to address these issues.</font></li> <li><font size="2"></font><font face="Arial" size="2">Many of these proposals with respect to recruitment, support, training and other issues could be applied to all members of the rural health team.</font></li></ul><div><br></div> <div><font face="Arial" size="2">It is recognised that both generalist and rural practice are described using many different terms throughout the world. Many of these have considerable significance to national or local groups. For simplicity a consistent terminology has been used throughout the document. Primary care/Family Medicine/General Practice has been referred to as General Practice and its practitioners General Practitioners. Doctors practising in rural areas are referred to as Rural Doctors. The practice of the extended generalist requiring usually specialist skills and broader community skills is referred to as Rural Practice. Vocational Training has been used to refer to the supervised experience and training following the standard medical qualification. This post-graduate training is designed to adequately equip the doctor with the skills required for general practice and rural practice.</font><br></div> <div><font face="Arial" size="2">The editorial group hopes that you, the reader, will find this a useful document whether you are a politician, a bureaucrat, an academic, a rural doctor or a community member.</font><br></div> <div><font face="Arial" size="2">Your contribution to the future refinement of this document through the WONCA Working Party on Rural Practice will be welcomed.</font><br></div> <div><font face="Arial" size="2">Dr Bruce Chater</font><br></div> <div><br></div> <div><a name="_Toc421594276"></a><a name="_Toc421594513"></a><a name="_Toc421602872"></a><a name="_Toc421602911"></a><font face="Arial" size="5"><b>Contents</b></font><br></div> <div><br></div> <hr> <div align="CENTER"><a href="rural_practice_2001-Executiv.html" target="RightFrame"><img src="C:\PROGRAM FILES\LOGICTRAN\docs\images\next.gif" alt="Next " border="0"></a> <a href="rural_practice_2001-Title.html"><img src="C:\PROGRAM FILES\LOGICTRAN\docs\images\first.gif" alt="Title Page " border="0"></a> <a href="rural_practice_2001-Contents.html"><img src="C:\PROGRAM FILES\LOGICTRAN\docs\images\contents.gif" alt="Contents " border="0"></a> </div> </body>