At GPTQ we are committed to our vision of shaping healthy communities through education. We strive to deliver the highest standards of education and training to GP Registrars so they can meet the primary healthcare needs of the remote, rural and urban communities where they will serve.

Though we specifically meet the education and training needs of the south-east Queensland and Darling Downs regions, we are committed to primary healthcare and GP training in the interest of all communities. For this reason we work closely with other Regional Training Organisations (RTOs) and groups who, just like us, are committed to enhancing primary care in Australia.

We are thought leaders. In addition to our education and training, GPTQ develops valuable resources for primary care, such as our highly sought-after Indigenous Health In-Practice Guide and the trailblazing Indigenous Immersion Program, which continues to be highly sought after by Registrars.

We are also at the forefront of research. In late 2019 the GPTQ research paper, ‘Rural pipeline effects on the recruitment and retention of General Practitioners in rural practice: systematic review and meta-analysis’ was accepted for publication by the Medical Journal of Australia. This important research, led by Dr Scott Preston, Dr Peter Coxeter and Jessica Ogden and undertaken in collaboration with the University of Queensland Rural Clinical School (UQRCS), presents policy implications for rural GP recruitment.

Strong numbers of Registrars continue to apply for training through GPTQ, which tells us our efforts towards excellence and innovation are being recognised. The quality of these Registrars and the outcomes they achieve from our training framework continues to be demonstrated through high pass rates for the RACGP and ACRRM exams. As the structure of training now moves to being led by RACGP and ACRRM rather than the Federal Health Department, GPTQ will continue to work closely with the Colleges to provide exceptional education and training.

In-line with our commitment to continuous improvement, in mid-2019 GPTQ undertook an operational restructure to ensure we have the nimbleness, expertise and infrastructure to respond to new challenges and educational environments. The value of this has been evidenced by our response to the COVID-19 crisis. We have been able to quickly establish effective work-from-home scenarios for all staff and we continue to deliver on all of our services, finding new and innovative ways to do so. GPTQ has been actively involved in the weekly COVID-19 Queensland Health State Health Emergency Coordination Centre (SCHECC) teleconferences, where we have been able to provide information and advocate for the needs of our primary care stakeholders.

Financially 2019/2020 has been a solidifying period for GPTQ and, as we look to 2020/2021, our financial position is strong. I wish to acknowledge the work of our new Chief Operating Officer Scott Bryant and the GPTQ Finance team, who have worked tirelessly in the past year to strengthen our reporting processes and procedures and improve budgeting. For the first time GPTQ has also appointed an internal auditor to ensure best-practice.

I am grateful to the Board and my extended senior management team for their commitment and support during 2019/2020. There have been challenges but GPTQ has emerged as a more nimble organisation, with a clear focus and an exceptional team dedicated to delivering excellence in education and training for our Registrars, Supervisors, practices and stakeholders.

Kathie Sadler