Rural training facilities and activities

2025 saw the third orientation for the Rural Generalist Anaesthesia Training Program (RGA) that has been jointly developed between ANZCA, RACGP and ACRRM to produce rural generalist anaesthesia graduates who can deliver safe anaesthesia and perioperative care in rural and remote areas. The RGA Training Program replaces the Joint Consultative Committee on Anaesthesia (JCCA).

Six eager new anaesthetics AST trainees came together for an orientation weekend on 18 and 19 January 2025 which served as a great introduction to the field of rural generalist anaesthesia before dispersing across the state to commence their training.

Held at Flinders University Rural and Remote Health SA – Victor Harbor campus and Southern Fleurieu Health Service, Drs Cassie Holt, James Evenden, Paul Galea, Vishnu Chakravarthe, Lakshmi Sunderasan and Cherilyn White were educated and supported across the weekend by experienced rural generalist anaesthetists (RGA) Drs Pete Gilchrist, Jason Bament, Justin Shute and Consultant Anaesthetists Drs Min Qi Lee and Rod Mitchell.

An additional big thanks to Drs Tyson Whitelaw and Jacob Cappelletto, 2024 trainees who shared their respective first-hand insights into the program from their recent RGA training experience. The RGPSA would also like give a special thanks to the RACGP for their ongoing commitment to rural medicine and kindly sponsoring a dinner for the group.

On Saturday July 12^th RGPSA hosted its second annual Rural Intern Clinical Sim day at Adelaide Health Simulation (AHS) with 24 interns from across rural and regional SA attending. The interns were put through their paces with skills stations involving trauma and airway management and obstetric emergencies before putting those newly acquired skills to use in simulated scenarios through the afternoon. Thanks to the incredible high fidelity simulation environment at AHS and the amazing medical and technical staff, the interns were able to practice high risk skills in a safe and supportive manner. Each group of interns were able to watch their peers undertake the scenario through one-way glass and then join in on the following debrief to offer comments and consolidate learning.

The RGPSA would like to thank all the facilitators who gave up their own time to come along and assist in training their junior colleagues, Dr Kris Bascomb, Dr Jess Martyn, Dr Jacob Cappelletto and Dr Tom Ryan. A big thank you also to Jane Longmire of Royal Australian College of General Practitioners  and Rohan Watts from Australian College of Rural and Remote Medicine who represented their respective colleges and answering career and training pathway questions.

On 4 October, junior medical officers from Port Lincoln and Whyalla got together for a joint clinical skills training day held at Whyalla Hospital.

It was a great opportunity for EFNLHN and FUNLHN JMOs to reconnect and strengthen relationships across the sites!

The day focussed on management of critically unwell patients and mental health emergencies.

Skill Stations included advanced airway management and oxylog setup. Throughout the day, many topics were covered ranging from Type 1 and Type 2 respiratory failure, stroke management, subarachnoid haemorrhage, high-flow nasal prongs and mental health emergencies and sedation.

Feedback has been positive with participants expressing they appreciated the realistic simulations and high quality training.

A big thankyou to Dr Pete Gilchrist (RGPSA Anaesthetics Advisor), Dr Louise Williams (Head of Unit – Inpatients Port Augusta Hospital), Dr Nadee Assiriyage (FUN Director of Clinical Training), Haylee Nicol (FUN Medical Admin Officer), Dr Ali Lydeamore (EFN DCT) and Kaylee Brown (EFN Medical Education Officer).

This year the Rural Generalist Anaesthetics (RGA) Orientation was held over 2 and a half days 24-26 January 2024 and included all aspects of RG Anaesthetics from an overview of curriculum and assessments to advanced airway management and of course lots and lots of pharmacology.

Eleven interns from across our six regional Local Health Networks (LHNs) gathered at the LearnEM Training Facility in Adelaide on Saturday October 12 for a day of clinical simulations and workshops.

Simon Cradock, Rescue Paramedic from SA Ambulance Service, led a Motor Vehicle Accident (MVA) extrication workshop with RPGSA Emergency Medicine Advisor, Dr Angela Travis. Later Dr Travis and Dr Pete Gilchrist, RGPSA Anaesthetics Advisor, facilitated a simulation where interns were able to manage a recently extricated patient in an Emergency Department (ED) setting which included getting hands on with some Focused Abdominal Scanning in Trauma (FAST) training. Dr Kris Bascomb, RGPSA Obstetrics Advisor, led attendees through management of Postpartum Haemorrhage (PPH) and Neonatal Resuscitation (NNR) and Haydyn Bromley, Cultural Director at Bookabee Australia provided a workshop session on Aboriginal cultural sensitivity in medical settings.

On Saturday June 29^th, 2024 six Obstetric trainees and our RGPSA Obstetrics Advisor, Dr Kris Bascomb, took part in a ventouse delivery workshop provided by the Vacca Academy and funded by the RGPSA.

Participants undertook a theory session covering all aspects of safe ventouse use during delivery before getting hands on with some practical sessions. A great day of education and an excellent opportunity for some often widely dispersed colleagues to reunite and reconnect professionally and personally.

Vacuum-Assisted Deliver Course for SA rural Obstetric Trainees – June 2024 article

On Saturday the 17th of February 2024, RGPSA Obstetrics Advisor Dr Kris Bascomb and Consultant Obstetrician, Dr Kati King hosted 7 enthusiastic attendees for a Rural Generalist Obstetrician (RGO) Obstetric Anal Sphincter Injuries (OASI) workshop in Nuriootpa. We thank Flinders University Rural and Remote Health SA for letting us use their campus and sims rooms.

Funded by Flinders University and delivered in Mount Gambier

The RGPSA organised a dedicated APLS course in January 2023 for rural trainees after hearing about the difficulties in accessing this course.