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Invitation to Join IMSANZ

On behalf of the IMSANZ Council may I extend you our sincere invitation to become a member of this active and influential society.

What is IMSANZ and who do we represent?

IMSANZ is the professional specialist society that supports and advances the practice of general internal medicine (GIM) along with practice in the areas of acute medicine and chronic disease management. IMSANZ currently represents over 560 physicians and trainees practising GIM, including general physicians with a subspecialty interest as well as subspecialists who practice GIM. It looks forward to representing all other health care professionals in these areas of specialist practice. The mission statement of the Society is to promote the co-ordinated, compassionate and cost-effective delivery of comprehensive, evidence-based, specialist care in GIM to populations in need.

IMSANZ recently introduced Associate Membership for Registered Allied Health Clinicians and Nurses practicing in general medicine, acute medicine units or generic chronic disease programs.

What are the roles and functions of IMSANZ?

Since its inception in 1997, IMSANZ has expended considerable effort in defining and publicising the role and attributes of the general physician, and acting as advocate for specialist practitioners of GIM within both government and college circles. The role of the general physician and of GIM in medical specialist care in Australasia is currently undergoing a renaissance as state and federal governments seek out consultant physicians with broad skills who can provide specialist care in collaboration with multidisciplinary teams to populations with complex, chronic, multi-organ system problems.

Events continue to reflect the need for the specialist workforce to maintain adequate numbers of physicians who practice GIM as well as satisfactory levels of competency in GIM skills for all physicians regardless of specialty and particularly to encourage dual training for physicians in general and acute medicine along with another specialty. The drivers for this return to generalism are outlined in the “Restoring the Balance” document available on the website or through the secretariat. In addition to this move towards generalism the last few years has seen a resurgence of interest in the interface between emergency and internal medicine with the development of acute medicine as an area of interest in practice for general physicians and with this the development of acute medicine units. These units encourage a multidisciplinary approach to patient management with this and the role of general physicians in the team care of chronic disease, it has been determined by the membership of the Internal Medicine Society of Australia and New Zealand to open up its membership to all healthcare professions working in these specialist areas.

The Society has been very active in recent years on several other fronts including:

  • rural physician workforce and training issues;
  • health policy making with respect to GIM and Acute Medicine;
  • RACP Clinical Support Systems Program and Better Practice Initiative;
  • participation in the expanded specialist training program;
  • continuing medical education by way of organising international, national and state/regional scientific meetings and reviewing draft national clinical guidelines produced by specialty societies or foundations;
  • health service research and clinical epidemiology, with publications in international and national peer-reviewed journals;
  • opinion work on the role of hospitalists and hospitalism;
  • collaboration between GIM and geriatric medicine in providing optimal elderly care;
  • representation of GIM on the editorial board of the college journal;
  • participation in the development of the college myCPD program;
  • participation in the college Educational Strategy Taskforce review of the current training program;
  • active involvement in the basic training curriculum;
  • development of the advanced training curriculum in general and acute medicine;
  • establishment of links with regional medical societies including work in Fiji; maintenance of international links such as those with the Society of Acute Medicine in the UK;
  • health consultancies to health ministries of Laos and Nauru.

What services does IMSANZ offer to individual members?

IMSANZ membership affords you an array of services over and above the broader policy and professional functions already mentioned:

  • Free newsletter published three times a year full of interesting reading including notification of IMSANZ scientific meetings and other forthcoming events in Australia and New Zealand, summary of important articles in general medical journals worldwide, rural news round-up, letters to the editor, and much more.
  • Directory of training positions for advanced trainees in GIM and practice positions for fellows in which you can advertise vacancies in your locale or search for new career opportunities.
  • Eligibility for Travelling Scholarships up to the value of $5,000 pa offered to advanced trainees and fellows of less than 5 years duration to attend international scientific meetings or courses relevant to GIM.
  • Eligibility for Research Awards up to $10,000 for advanced trainees and fellows of less than 5 years duration who wish to pursue post-graduate research degrees in health service research, quality improvement or evidence-based medicine.
  • Eligibility for Pacific Associate Member Travel Scholarship up to $1,500 to eligible members to attend an IMSANZ or RACP meeting in Australia and New Zealand.
  • Website access to critically appraised clinical practice guidelines and other forms of decision support covering a range of clinical specialties, as well as on-line copies of the newsletter and other IMSANZ publications.
  • Merchandise comprising society T-shirts, ties and badges to keep you looking good as an advocate of GIM!

In time further services more closely aligned to the interests of our new associate members will be developed

How do I apply for membership?

If you wish to become a member, then please complete the appropriate form (see Application Forms below) and forward with payment details to: The Secretary, IMSANZ, 145 Macquarie Street, Sydney 2000. Please ensure you have signed the privacy agreement overleaf.

I look forward to welcoming you as a new member of IMSANZ at the next ASM meeting, and to joining with you in advancing the practice of GIM in Australia and New Zealand.  

Annual Membership Fees

IMSANZ has one of the lowest membership fees of any of the specialty societies and has kept the rise in fees to less than the inflation level for many years. The following amounts are in Australian dollars. (Australian members need to add 10% GST to amounts shown below).

  • Full members: AUD250
  • Trainee members (Advanced Trainees): AUD62
  • Associate members (Allied Health Workers) AUD62
  • Pacific Associate members: AUD62

Application Forms

Please download and print the appropriate form, fill it in and return it to IMSANZ.

How do I find more information?

If you have further enquiries please Contact Us.

 

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