Rural Doctors' Association president, Dr Peter Rischbieth, said people living in rural and remote areas in Australia are expected to die three years earlier than those living in metropolitan areas.

"The health outcomes, including cancer outcomes and heart disease outcomes are already much worse in the country," Dr Rischbieth said.

"The shortage of doctors is far, far worse than we initially thought...there are 16,000 vacancies for General Practitioners in rural Australia, excluding the 6000 vacant nursing positions."

Queensland Health has offered big cash incentives to overseas trained doctors to fill vacancies in rural South East Queensland.

Under Queensland's Overseas Trained Doctor Scheme, government relocation grants worth up to $20,000 are offered to international medical graduates moving to the bush to assist with travel expenses.

A recent survey conducted on behalf of Australia's Rural Workforce Agencies found more than 1080 general practitioners were working in rural Queensland in December last year, compared with just 967 in regional Victoria and 562 in Western Australia.

Dr Rischbieth said the crisis in patient care would only worsen in metropolitan areas, unless doctor shortages in rural areas were addressed first.

"It is worse where we're concerned, because we are competing with doctor shortages in the city, but I ask, 'What is going to happen when there is nothing to compete with? When the cities don't even have doctors to offer?"' he said.

Health organisations from across the country will meet in Canberra today in a desperate bid to address the shortage of health professionals in rural Australia.

Representatives from 14 groups will be there, including the National Farmers Federation, the Australian College of Midwives, and the national peak body dealing with Aboriginal health.

The Rural Doctors' Association will lobby the Government for funding towards new models of medical practice, which combine nursing, midwifery and doctor services.