Rural GPs to Receive Training for Sight-Saving Eye Injections
15 Jul 2026
The Royal Australian College of General Practitioners (RACGP), the Royal Australian and New Zealand College of Ophthalmologists (RANZCO), and the Australian College of Rural and Remote Medicine (ACRRM) have released a joint statement calling for better access to ophthalmic care in regional Australia. They say many eye care services are still concentrated in private clinics located in major cities.
Around 11,000 Australians are currently receiving IVIs to treat retinal vein occlusion. However, many public hospitals do not provide these injections, and with 84% of ophthalmologists based in metropolitan areas, access remains difficult for many rural patients.
The organisations say travel is a major barrier, with 3% of patients stopping treatment because they cannot easily reach specialist services.
To help address this gap, RANZCO, RACGP and ACRRM are developing a pilot program that will train GPs and Rural Generalists to safely perform IVIs under the remote supervision of experienced ophthalmologists or visiting ophthalmology teams.
The training program will include online learning modules, educational resources, supervised clinical training, and ongoing annual Continuing Professional Development (CPD) supported by mentoring ophthalmologists during outreach visits.
The organisations emphasise that GPs and Rural Generalists will work alongside ophthalmologists, not replace them. The program is designed to support collaborative care while improving access to timely treatment in communities with limited specialist services.
RACGP Rural Chair Associate Professor Michael Clements said many people in remote areas miss out on eye care because specialist services are difficult to access. He said expanding the skills of GPs and Rural Generalists, with appropriate training and specialist support, could help bring more eye care closer to where patients live.
The pilot program will also include an evaluation framework to measure patient outcomes, access to services and workforce sustainability. The three organisations say the initiative aims to strengthen rural healthcare and improve access to sight-saving treatment across Australia.
Rural GPs to Receive Training for Sight-Saving Eye Injections
Source: RACGP newsGP