As we move into a new training year you will be farewelling your current registrar and welcoming the new one. Some registrars will be staying on as Fellows to become a permanent part of the practice team and hopefully one day a Supervisor. So, the cycle of learning, consolidation and eventually teaching and supervision goes on.

If this is your first registrar as a new practice it is important to ensure your registrar has a good orientation. To do this you need a plan and a good plan always starts with a checklist. GPSA’s orientation checklist and New Supervisor guide are a very useful place to start.

I strongly advise new Supervisors to look at the GPSA guides and other educational resources on the GPSA website. For those Supervisors/Practices who have been hosting registrars for a few years and are looking to take their supervision to a higher level I recommend “Best practice for Supervision in General Practice.”

Practice managers will also find useful information in the Guides. As a practice member you also have access to a contract template to use with your registrar.

Your regional training organisation (RTO) will also have resources that can guide you in teaching and supervising your registrar, these are essential reading. Your RTO provides Professional development (PD) for Supervisors. These PD activities not only enhance your skills and knowledge, but are valuable networking opportunities with other Supervisors. Many friendships have been formed through these forums.

With the severe drought in parts of Australia and current water crisis in the Murray Darling basin I note the recent EAT-Lancet commission report titled “Food in the Anthropocene” has devised the world’s first scientific targets for a universal “healthy planetary diet”.

They note that obesity, undernutrition and climate change are the worlds biggest threats.

I shall be carefully reading this report and discussing it with my registrar and I encourage you to also.

Finally a warm congratulations to those GP Supervisor members who received Order of Australia honours last week

• Emeritus Professor John Murtagh AO
• Dr Stephen Howle OAM
• Dr Gregory Thompson OAM
• Dr John Menzies OAM
• Dr Peter Davidson OAM

On a personal note I would like to congratulate my sister Dr Christine Connors, General Manager Primary Healthcare Top End (Public health physician)  who was awarded an OAM on Australia Day for services to medicine in a range of roles. Christine has been a tireless campaigner for Aboriginal health for many years.

Gerard Connors
Chair GPSA