A case for more year-long internships outside metropolitan areas?
OBJECTIVE
To determine whether medical graduates who spent their intern year at a non-metropolitan hospital were more likely to practise outside metropolitan areas on completion of training than were interns in metropolitan hospitals.


METHODS
Retrospective follow-up of doctors who held year-long internships at a non-metropolitan hospital and interns from metropolitan hospitals.


METHODS
Ballarat Base Hospital (BBH) (Rural, Remote and Metropolitan Area [RRMA] rural zone) and hospitals in Melbourne and Geelong (RRMA metropolitan zone).


METHODS
57/63 (90%) Victorian medical graduates completing internships at BBH between 1989 and 1997 and 126/126 (100%) sex-matched metropolitan interns, chosen at random.


METHODS
Practice location in 2002.


RESULTS
More BBH interns were practising as GPs outside metropolitan areas (44%) than metropolitan interns (13%) (difference, 31%; 95% CI, 17%-45%). The proportion of interns in specialist practice outside metropolitan areas was small for both groups - zero and 3%, respectively (difference, - 3%; 95% CI, - 6% to 0). None of the specialist training posts held by interns were outside metropolitan areas. Of BBH interns entering general practice, 41% (95% CI, 24%-58%) did so in the local health region.


CONCLUSIONS
Regional interns are a good source of non-metropolitan GPs, especially locally. Prospective studies to determine the precise influence of regional internships on eventual practice location, and whether more such posts would lead to more graduates entering non-metropolitan practice, would be worthwhile.
Peach
Hedley G
HG
Ballarat Health Services Base Hospital, Ballarat, VIC.
Trembath
Maxine
M
Fensling
Bernie
B
D005194:Family Practice / Q000193:education; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006801:Humans; D007396:Internship and Residency; D008297:Male; D008507:Medically Underserved Area; D011365:Professional Practice Location; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D012423:Rural Health; D014739:Victoria