Welcome from the Head of Department

Thank you for visiting the Department of General Practice at The University of Melbourne. General Practice began as a Unit within the Department of Community Medicine in 1977 and in 2001 was established as a separate clinical department within the School of Medicine; Faculty of Medicine, Dentistry and Health Sciences.  We are a multidisciplinary Department that is committed to excellence in teaching, research and knowledge exchange.

General Practice is the core of our health care system and the main provider of primary care in Australia. The face of general practice is changing and this is reflected in our activities. The Department continues to play a traditional and key role in teaching medical students about general practice and primary care. Our Academic and Professional staff works with a large and dedicated group of clinical teachers and medical educators from across metropolitan and rural Victoria to deliver our medical curriculum. Recently, we have formed partnerships to deliver vocational training for general practice and postgraduate training for primary care nursing. These activities are of utmost importance to ensuring a quality health workforce for Australia and beyond.

In 2006, we established The Primary Care Research Unit (PCRU) to support our growing team of multidisciplinary primary care researchers and research higher degree students. Our research is broadly aimed to improve the quality and safety of primary care via models of care and clinical interventions that are rigorously developed and evaluated using a mix of quantitative and qualitative methods. We have established research programs in areas of national priority such as mental health, chronic disease, young people’s health, and violence and abuse.

Please take some time to explore our website.