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Is rural medicine a separate discipline?
1Faculty of Medicine, Health and Molecular Sciences, James Cook University, Queensland, Australia. Janie.Smith@jcu.edu.au
The Australian Journal of Rural Health
|March 17, 2004
Summary
Rural medical practice in Australia is distinct from urban practice in its context, content, and care processes. While three criteria for a distinct discipline are met, external recognition remains unresolved.
Area of Science:
- Medical Education
- Rural Health
- General Practice
Background:
- The Australian College of Rural and Remote Medicine was founded in 1997 to address perceived unmet needs of rural doctors.
- The distinctiveness of rural versus urban medical practice remains a subject of ongoing debate.
Purpose of the Study:
- To explore the scope of rural medical practice in Australia.
- To determine if rural medical practice is evolving into a distinct medical discipline.
Main Methods:
- Utilized clinical scenarios to illustrate the scope of rural practice.
- Synthesized existing research literature on rural medical practice.
Main Results:
- Rural and remote medical practice differs from urban practice in context, content, and process of care.
- Three of the four established criteria for a distinct medical discipline are currently met in Australia.
Conclusions:
- Rural medical practice exhibits unique characteristics compared to urban practice.
- Further external recognition is needed for rural medicine to be formally acknowledged as a distinct discipline in Australia.