Bagot Community Health Clinic

Darwin is situated on the southern shore of Beagle Gulf in the Top End of Australia's Northern Territory. The physical character of Darwin is generally flat with extensive estuarine and coastal
flats with no elevations greater than 52 metres. The most significant feature is Darwin Harbour, which is 999 square kilometres in area.

Around 80,000. The Greater Darwin area includes the city of Palmerston, population around 25,000, and a rural area with about another 15,000 people.

Darwin is located in the lands of the Larrakia people. The population is very cosmopolitan with a mix of European, Aboriginal, Chinese, Vietnamese, Greek, Indonesian, Timorese, and other nationalities. Northern Australia, being in the tropics, is dominated by a Wet Season from about October to April and a Dry Season from May to September. It is a fast growing and developing city and is characterised by an outdoor lifestyle with all modern conveniences.

Excellent training experience for general practice is available in Darwin. The Royal Darwin Hospital offers a broad range of training posts ideally suited for doctors planning a career in general practice, including GP terms in the RMO I or RMO II years. There is a range of different general practice terms from urban to isolated rural attachments with a large aboriginal health component.

Not only does Darwin offer first class training and educational experiences, but it provides very pleasant surroundings in which to live and work. Easy access to spectacular National Parks such as Kakadu, Nitmiluk and Litchfield, in addition to pleasant beaches, and a range of sporting and recreational activities complement the relaxed, outdoor lifestyle.

The clinical experience in hospital and GP attachments is complemented by various educational activities. There are weekly tutorials at Royal Darwin Hospital (RDH) plus special workshops which are held every 6 months in addition to the daily lunchtime educational activities conducted at RDH.
The Training Program provides a range of educational opportunities for Registrars during their General Practice Term rotations. This includes three hours teaching per week in the general practice, weekly half-day release sessions which involve all registrars in the bush by teleconference and the 6 monthly workshops. One day of each workshop is multidisciplinary and involves other health care professionals.
Video equipment is available to allow Registrars to tape some of their consultations and discuss these with their GP Supervisor or a Medical Educator. The office houses a small library of educational resources including videos on loan from the National Resource Centre. Access to the NRC is also available. Catalogues of books, videos and films which can be borrowed, and contents pages of family practice journals from which Registrars can request articles of particular interest. We support registrars who wish to access Email and other Internet services

The Training Program in Darwin has a motivated group of experienced general practitioners to provide advice and guidance to Registrars in recognizing their learning needs and objectives, and to help in planning ways to meet these needs. We are committed to providing excellent training for all registrars but particularly those seeking a career in rural practice as much of the experience to be gained here is particularly relevant to that group. Being small and away from all the bustle you will get to know the staff and other registrars quite well and you will have a chance to be personally involved in planning the learning opportunities presented.

In September 1839, Captain Wickham and a small party from HMS Beagle investigated the entrance of Darwin Harbour, naming it Port Darwin (after a former member of a scientific team on board the Beagle, naturalist Charles Darwin). However, it was not until 1869 that the first urban settlement was established by South Australia’s Surveyor General, G. W. Goyder. Goyder landed near where Government House is now situated, with a party of 150 surveyors and assistants. Within six months Goyder and his men had completed the survey of a principal town which they named Palmerston.
Darwin grew very slowly until the late 1880s then stagnated until after 1911, when the Commonwealth Government took charge of the Territory. In 1911 the town was renamed Darwin in honour of Charles Darwin. Around this time, the first suburbs were created. From 1933, with the commitment to develop the Larrakeyah Army Base as a major facility, Darwin has been strongly influenced by developments in the defence sector. Many allied servicemen poured into the city during the Second World War, when Darwin was an important strategic post. The city was the target of more than 60 Japanese bombing raids. While the war had tragic effects, it did bring about some positive changes such as the sealing of the Stuart Highway linking Darwin to Alice Springs. With the mineral discoveries of the 1950s and 60s, Darwin’s economy experienced rapid development. Confidence in the north was confirmed in 1978 when the Northern Territory achieved Self Government. Darwin has experienced three major cyclones since European settlement, the worst being Cyclone Tracy on Christmas Eve 1974. As Australia’s most northerly city, incorporating a major port, Darwin occupies a vital place in the nation’s defence capabilities. In recent years, a significant relocation of Australia’s frontline defence capacity to the Northern Territory, and particularly the Darwin region, has occurred. This has resulted in a substantial military presence in Darwin, to the extent where defence is now the third largest contributor to the Territory economy after mining and tourism. Today, Darwin is a thriving modern cosmopolitan city with a high standard and variety of facilities catering for visitors and locals alike

Regular services interstate and overseas

All year

All contemporary facilities available

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