Case Management: Regional and Rural General Practice

Rural and regional General Practitioners frequently manage high-acuity presentations with limited on-site resources, extended retrieval times and variable access to specialist support. This course provides General Practitioners with an evidence-based framework for triaging, stabilising and managing patients safely while navigating telehealth consultation, transfer decisions and rural service limitations.

Through eight interactive case studies, participants explore case management across regional and rural general practice, including:

1. Recognising and stabilising acute abdominal pain with evolving sepsis while awaiting retrieval
2. Triaging acute dyspnoea and chest pain in a regional setting with limited cardiology access
3. Assessing and managing suicide risk in a rural patient without immediate specialist mental health services
4. Diagnosing and managing a suspicious pigmented lesion using teledermatology and in-rooms excision
5. Stabilising and coordinating retrieval for a suspected ruptured ectopic pregnancy
6. Providing geriatric palliative care and symptom management within a local rural hospital
7. Recognising and escalating a rapidly progressing severe skin and soft tissue infection
8. Managing a paediatric respiratory emergency with telehealth support from a regional paediatrician

Learners will develop practical skills in point-of-care testing and ultrasound, structured triage and stabilisation, telehealth-supported specialist decision-making, retrieval and transfer planning, and safety-netting to deliver safe, effective care in regional and rural general practice.

1. Determine appropriate strategies to support safe and effective patient management in regional and rural general practice.
2. Apply a broad scope of practice, integrating telehealth, multidisciplinary teamwork, and specialist referral networks, to manage patient cases in regional and rural settings.

All degree qualified medical practitioners.