Good Practice - Project
Building the next generation of rural doctors in Czechia
A national programme tackling a shortage of general practitioners in Czech rural areas through education, training and clerkships in rural practices.
Summary
A Czech national programme addresses a shortage of general practitioners (GPs) in the country’s rural areas and other underserved regions. It promotes generational renewal in rural primary healthcare through education, clerkships for medical students and young doctors, and curriculum reform.
The programme has established 26 educational centres for general medicine in 13 Czech regions. Other initiatives include seminars at medical faculties and for general practice nurses, an educational podcast series and training courses for educators.
Results
- 26 general medicine educational centres operating across 13 Czech regions (excluding Prague);
- Seminars delivered at the country's eight medical faculties;
- Clerkships provided in rural general practices for medical students and young doctors;
- ‘Train-the-trainer’ courses delivered, building the pool of qualified educators in general practice;
- Reforms initiated of the final specialist examinations for GPs;
- Educational podcast series produced and disseminated to students, young doctors and GPs across the country;
- Seminars held nationwide for general practice nurses.
Promoter
- Czech Society of General Practice, civil society organisation
Funding
Budget: EUR 1 000 000
Source:
- European Social Fund Plus
- National co-financing
Resources
Documents
Context
Rural areas of Czechia face a growing shortage of GPs. The rural workforce is ageing, replacements are hard to find, and clinical training is heavily concentrated in urban hospitals, giving future doctors limited exposure to rural practice. Medical education has traditionally treated general practice as a secondary specialty, professional training pathways rarely include a rural component, and small rural practices have been less involved in medical curricula than university hospitals.
This national programme promotes generational renewal in rural primary care through multiple avenues, including regional teaching infrastructure, exposure to rural general practice, curriculum reform and continuing education.
Objectives
- Address the shortage of GPs, including those specialising in child and adolescent health, in rural areas and other underserved regions of Czechia;
- Establish 26 teaching centres for general medicine in 13 Czech regions (excluding Prague);
- Provide medical students and young doctors with clerkships in rural practices;
- Reform general practice education, including specialist examinations, and provide continuing education;
- Strengthen primary care teams in rural areas by training general practice nurses across the country;
- Contribute to more equitable distribution of primary care services across Czechia.
Activities, key actors, and timeline
- The programme has a distributed teaching infrastructure, with 26 general medicine educational centres spread across 13 regions (excluding Prague), seminars delivered at the country's eight medical faculties, and clerkships provided in rural practices. This brings general practice training closer to where the shortages are and exposes future doctors to rural family medicine.
- Clerkships involve one-week stays in rural general practices for medical students and young doctors, with accommodation support provided.
- Reforms of final specialist examinations for GPs have been initiated, to improve the quality and consistency of certification.
- ‘Train-the-trainer’ courses help build the pool of qualified educators in general practice. These are based on the framework of the European Academy of Teachers in General Practice/Family Medicine.
- A podcast series called Praktici (Practitioners) provides accessible continuing education for GPs.
- Nationwide seminars for general practice nurses help strengthen the capacity of rural primary care teams.
- The programme is delivered through the Czech Society of General Practice and is co-financed by the European Social Fund Plus and the Czech state.
Success factors/lessons learnt
- The programme tackles generational renewal in rural general practice frommultiple angles to help address workforce shortages. This includes providing regional teaching infrastructure, clerkships in rural areas, reform of specialist training and examinations, and providing continuing education for doctors and nurses.
- Establishing 26 general medicine educational centres across 13 Czech regions has created a distributed teaching infrastructure that brings training closer to where the workforce shortages are, rather than being concentrated in the major university cities. This structural investment will remain after the programme ends.
- Clerkships in rural general practices give medical students and young doctors first-hand experience of rural family medicine as a career option, at a point when their choices are still open. This is a stronger recruitment tool than communication campaigns aimed at doctors already in the workforce.
- Extending training to general practice nurses is central to sustainable rural primary care. Investing only in doctors would leave half of the workforce challenge unaddressed.
- Delivery of the programme through the Czech Society of General Practice strengthens legitimacy, buy-in from the profession and continuity beyond the programme period.
Contacts
David Halata, halatad@gmail.com
Kateřina Javorská, k1.javorska@gmail.com