Training Tomorrow’s Doctors: all pulling in the right direction – Discussion Paper

This Discussion Paper sets out Medical Deans’ vision for a medical education and training continuum that leads to an adaptable and supported workforce with the required capabilities, and in the right numbers, right places, and right specialties to serve the needs of the people of Australia and New Zealand.  

As our populations’ health needs change, so too must our models and settings of care and how we train our future doctors. We need a greater focus on generalist skills, teamwork, preventive and long-term care, and working across traditional care boundaries. We need to teach skills and build experience in adapting to ongoing disruption and innovation. We need students and graduates learning in and for our communities, in an education and training system that actively supports paths to careers in the regions and specialties where they’re most needed. Underpinning all of this we need a healthy workplace environment, with embedded systems that safeguard patient care and the health of students and doctors. 

In this paper we layout our ideas and recommendations to support this much-needed shift. We seek to engage and partner with health services, student associations, medical colleges, regulators, representative bodies, and Australian and New Zealand governments to share and progress these ideas, and co-develop a medical education and training continuum that can better meet the future health needs of our populations and better support our future doctors.