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The 2023 Minimum Data Set Summary Report is a snapshot of the remote, rural and regional general practitioner workforce landscape in Queensland as of 30 November 2023.
Health Workforce Queensland maintains an up-to-date database of medical practitioners working in a general practice context in remote, rural, and regional Queensland (private practices, small hospitals, Royal Flying Doctor Service (RFDS) and Aboriginal Community Controlled Health Services (ACCHS) informed by numerous sources, including an annual survey of general practices and general practitioners (GPs).
Information generated by the minimum data set (MDS) informs policy development relevant to the remote, rural, and regional health workforce, and service delivery at local, state and national levels. The MDS allows for effective measurement of current workforce distributions and helps facilitate planning for actual or potential areas of workforce shortage.
Synopsis of Results
As of 30 November 2023, there were 2,687 medical practitioners working in RA 5-2 Queensland. The Northern Queensland Primary Health Network (NQPHN) region had the largest remote, rural, and regional medical workforce in the state.
The average age of the workforce was 49.07 years and 46.56 percent of the workforce were female practitioners, although, in Remote communities (RA5), the representation of female practitioners was lower at 41.96 percent.
Approximately 50.32 percent of the medical workforce were trained in Australia and 4.91 percent reported working as solo practitioners. This figure increased to 11.10 percent when those who reported being solo practitioners working in a co-located practice with at least one other GP were included.
Practitioners self-reported working an average of 40.80 hours per week on medical-related work, with female practitioners averaging approximately six hours less per week compared to their male counterparts.
Turnover of practitioners was highest in Remote locations at approximately 19 percent, followed by approximately 18 percent in Inner Regional and Outer Regional locations. Just under 15 percent of practitioners in Very Remote locations and 12.5 percent of practitioners in Remote locations indicated their intention to remain in their current location for less than 12 months.
Image credit: Chris Mills
