Medical student

A medical student is someone enrolled in a primary medical degree. Australian primary medical degrees include a general practice placement. Medical degrees may be undergraduate (where the student has not completed any degree before) or postgraduate (where the student has completed one or more degrees before). The course length varies from 4 years as a postgraduate degree to 5 or 6 years as an undergraduate degree.

Prevocational doctor

A junior doctor who has successfully completed medical school and is undertaking supervised work in a hospital but not yet enrolled in a speciality training program (also sometimes called vocational training) is known as a prevocational doctor. This includes postgraduate year 1 (PGY1/intern year) and may include PGY2 and subsequent years. Specialist training programs can be entered by prevocational doctors at various times. The Confederation of Postgraduate Medical Councils develops the curriculum framework for junior doctors in Australia which ensures a common skill level.

Vocational general practice registrar

A vocational general practice registrar is a registered medical practitioner who is enrolled in a general practice training program approved by the RACGP and/or the Australian College of Rural and Remote Medicine (ACRRM) to achieve Fellowship of the RACGP and/or ACRRM. The RACGP Curriculum for Australian General Practice describes the training requirements for vocational general practice registrars.

For more information visit the Australian General Practice Training website.

Vocationally recognised GP completing CPD

A vocationally recognised GP is a registered medical practitioner who has completed a general practice training program approved by the RACGP and/or ACRRM and has achieved Fellowship of the RACGP and/or ACRRM. Vocationally recognised GPs can claim higher rebates from Medicare Australia.

In addition, vocational recognition was granted to doctors who were working in general practice for a period of 5 years prior to 1995.

Continuing professional development (CPD):

• is the ongoing professional development and continuing quality improvement activities that is required of all GPs in order to maintain their general practice competencies
• may or may not be formally required, eg. to undertake radiology or gain medical indemnity cover eligibility
• that is formally required needs to be activities that are recognised by the RACGP QI&CPD Program or the ACRRM Professional Development Program (PDP)
• may or may not involve the education of others, eg. student supervision or development of college standards