16 September 2019 | Australian GPs, Clinic Owners and Practice Managers, UK/Ireland GPs | 4 minutes read
The new Practice Experience Pathway (PEP) Specialist Stream has come into effect on September 1, 2019 and replaces the Specialist Recognition Program. The previous program was used by many GPs moving from the UK to work in Australia.
The Practice Experience Program (PEP) Specialist Stream provides a pathway for international medical graduates (IMGS) with overseas specialist qualifications to gain Fellowship with the RACGP (FRACGP).
The PEP has two streams, the standard and specialist streams. More info on the two different streams can be found here.
Supported by the Australian Government’s Stronger Rural Health Strategy, PEP is the new specialist general practitioner training and self-directed education program for SIMGs to attain Fellowship with the RACGP.
There is still some uncertainty about how the comparability assessment will be conducted as a number of unexpected requirements were introduced in late August 2019. It is unclear how many of these will be carried over to the new PEP Specialist Stream.
Although this news is encouraging, other changes such as the requirement for Health Workforce Certificates and the changes to DPA maps, it will be more difficult to fill positions in MMM1 areas in the future than it was prior to March 2019.
The information we have at hand indicates that RACGP will examine the following factors:
Another positive outcome from the recent changes is that certification from more countries than ever have been assessed as substantially comparable.
We are currently waiting on the outcome for cases from Belgium and Germany.
The time required to gain Fellowship with RACGP depends on the outcome of your comparability assessment:
The pathway depends on whether you are deemed Substantially Comparable or Partially Comparable. Below is a chart from the RACGP website that outlines the two different pathways.
If you have any questions in relation to your future recruitment requirements please contact us at info@alecto.com.au.
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