Review panel
How we obtain information and ensure rigour in review
Health Leaders Australia (HLA) and GPTQ (General Practice Training Queensland) have developed MedVersus to help medical students and prevocational doctors make informed choices about their training options.
MedVersus is a comprehensive guide to postgraduate training programs offered by the specialist medical colleges in Australia. There are seemingly limitless medical specialties, and choosing the right training pathway can be daunting and time consuming, especially when it comes to identifying the eligibility and admission requirements.
For instance, some specialty training programs will accept trainees into their program during the second hospital year (PGY2), while others don’t accept trainees into a specialty until after PGY2 and three years of basic training (many of the physician specialty training pathways are advanced training pathways).
The following process has been undertaken to ensure the most up-to- date and relevant information is utilised:
The team behind the MedVersus project has gathered all training requirements from 75 medical specialty training programs. We use experts who work in the medical colleges to provide you with information on eligibility and entry requirements, application dates,training requirements (including mandatory rotations), duration of training, annual costs of training and costs of examinations, assessments, important dates and other relevant information.
The information is further reviewed and cross-checked with information provided on college websites. Current trainees and supervisors of training also review the information to identify what is important to you and compare those factors across the medical specialties to help you choose those specialties best suited to you.
Information has also been derived from other sources, such as the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS), with permission.
HLA and GPTQ have appointed an independent and voluntary panel of experts to form the MedVersus Review Panel, which advises the MedVersus Management Team. The MedVersus Review Panel members are:
– Dr Brendan Grabau (Chair);
– Helen Barry;
– Ian Yard-Smith;
– (to be confirmed).
The MedVersus Review Panel offers advice and recommendation to relevant GPTQ stakeholders. GPTQ is under no obligation to accept any recommendation however consider highly the expertise of the group related to the project.
Dr Brendan Grabau
Chair of the MedVersus Review Panel
MedVersus Review Panel Chair, Dr Brendan Grabau, is currently Director of Education at the Royal Australian and New Zealand College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists (RANZCOG).
He has previously held senior management positions at The Royal Australasian College of Physicians (RACP), The Royal Australian and New Zealand College of Radiologists (RANZCR) and The Royal Australian College of General Practitioners (RACGP).
For the last 10 years, Brendan has worked in postgraduate medical training, a subject he is passionate about. He understands the complexity of the training landscape, particularly for prevocational doctors, and is aware of the many issues that medical students and prevocational doctors face when it comes to making decisions that can impact their careers. He believes that the information that the colleges give to prospective trainees is complex and difficult to navigate.
“Medversus is an excellent initiative of GPTQ. It is a straightforward and up-to- date compendium that explores and compares the many different specialty training pathways available to medical students and prevocational doctors. It is unique and a valuable resource for any doctor about to embark on specialty training.”
Brendan originally trained as a pharmacologist. He has a PhD, BSc (Hons) and BA and is completing an MBA. He is a graduate of the Australian Institute of Company Directors (AICD) and a member of both the Australian Institute of Management (AIM) and the Association for Medical Education in Europe (AMEE).
Helen Barry
Member of the MedVersus Review Panel
Helen Barry operates a consultancy service focusing on primary health care, drawing on her experience and skills in marketing and change management. She is skilled at bringing together information from a range of unrelated sources and seeing connections that create innovative and practical solutions.
Helen’s achievements include managing the development and publication of a well-respected general practice peer-review journal and a general practice magazine. She is also experienced in digital marketing, organising education events and business development partnerships, and has managed an online education development team for primary health care.
Ian Yard-Smith
Member of the MedVersus Review Panel
Ian Yard-Smith currently holds the role of Executive Manager, Professional Services, MDA National Insurance and is a committee member of the Insurance Council of Australia.
He is a skilled communicator, quick thinker and problem solver with a focus on improvement. His specialties include executive level management, leadership and change management, stakeholder management, research and design, development and implementation of strategy (including education strategy), business development, advocacy and corporate governance.
Ian gained extensive experience in litigation and corporate and commercial legal practice after graduating from the University of Tasmania with a BA/LLB and BA (Hons). He holds a current practising certificate in New South Wales. He is also a graduate member of the Australian Institute of Company Directors (AICD).