Dr Simon Barnett
Meet GPTQ Medical Educator, Dr Simon Barnett
Dr Simon Barnett has been a GP for over 30 years and has a wealth of experience in both urban and rural settings.
“I really enjoy the intergenerational aspect of general practice, especially in a rural setting. I loved delivering bubs and then looking after the mothers and their children. Those children have followed me and I’m looking after their children now.”
Medicine is in the family genes
As a youngster, Dr Simon Barnett was fairly single-minded when it came to his future career path, particularly as he had a number of family members in the healthcare field.
“I was always going to be in the health industry. My father was a third generation dentist and it was expected that I would do dentistry. For a long time, I thought I would, but then in my late high school years, I wondered if there was an opportunity for me to do something broader. So I chose medicine and went down that path instead,” he says.
But it was another relative whose dedication to their vocation steered Simon towards his eventual specialty choice.
“My dear Uncle Ron was a rural GP in Stanthorpe for many, many years. I thought he had such a wonderful and worthwhile lifestyle. It made me think that general practice in a rural setting was where I’d like to be,” he says.
The journey to GP
With the seeds of a GP career firmly sown into his mind, Simon moved from his hometown of Ipswich to Brisbane and studied for his degree at The University of Queensland. After that, he travelled out to Mount Isa with his wife to do his postgraduate years at the local hospital. This included stints at Mornington Island, Richmond and Cloncurry, developing his interests in GP anaesthetics and obstetrics along the way.
It wasn’t too long before Simon found himself in Beaudesert studying for his fellowship and then practising as a GP amongst ‘nice green grass rather than the spinifex’ of Mount Isa. It was in this rural location that he met another important role model.
“Dr Michael Glover was the medical superintendent at Beaudesert hospital for the 13 years I was there. He was an absolute inspiration to me and a very capable doctor. He challenged me to get outside my comfort zone and so I did a lot of things that I probably wouldn’t have done without his encouragement.”
Rural experience
Simon believes his time spent in rural general practice at Beaudesert and also Boonah allowed him to expand his skillset exponentially.
“Very early in the piece, my practice became obstetric and then anaesthetic based. I was probably delivering somewhere between 30 and 40 babies a year and regularly doing anaesthetics for the local hospital. I loved that part of it,” he says.
“In a rural setting, you get more practise opportunities because patients are much more accepting. You get to do things that you probably wouldn’t in an urban setting. And once you do that a few times and build up your confidence, it’s an absolute buzz and makes you feel so worthwhile.”
Remediation focus
After raising his family in the country which he says was ‘a great experience’, Simon is now back in his hometown of Ipswich practising two full days and two half days at Hunter Street Medical. In addition, he teaches a day a week with GPTQ in the Darling Downs and West Moreton region, as well as holding an additional key role with the organisation in remediation.
“It’s all about trying to identify registrars at risk. We establish extra support programs or give them extra time with their supervisor. We want to try to ensure their registrar pathway is as pain-free as possible. But often the reality is that we pick up the pieces after they’ve failed an exam. We then have to work out why and help remedy that,” he says.
As for the reasons some registrars struggle, Simon says it’s multifactorial and can vary widely from personal matters to health problems to difficulties in the way they tackle their exams.
“One of the big issues for a number of registrars in my area is that English is their second language. Understanding the exam questions can be very difficult for them,” he explains.
Teaching up and comers
Simon began his medical education career in 1991 as a GP supervisor and then moved onto teaching first and third-year medical students at the University of Queensland. But it wasn’t long before he expanded to teaching registrars. He says he enjoys it for a number of reasons.
“I like the variation of not being in the consulting room all the time. I love the enthusiasm of young people learning, plus it keeps me up to date. If you’re going to teach the topics, it’s vital you have the most current medical knowledge.”
Simon also loves encouraging registrars to ‘hone their communication skills’ by seeking to understand their patients’ expectations and listening to their ideas. He feels it’s the most important aspect of becoming a successful GP.
“Registrars should also think about what they’re actually doing, rather than just doing it because that’s what the guidelines say or what someone’s told them. And always make sure you’ve got evidence to back it up.”
Being a good GP
For current GP registrars, Simon says it’s ‘very easy to be a popular GP’ but it’s so much harder to be a good GP who maintains their principles.
“Being a good GP is like being a good entertainer. People book an appointment in advance, just as you would a ticket to see an entertainer. If the entertainer is good, you leave feeling wonderful and you share that experience with others,” he says.
“If you’re a good GP, you make your patient feel better either physically or psychologically, or perhaps even both. They will then tell others how good you are and return time and time again. And so you will build your practice and experience.”
