Rural workforce recruitment is a critical health issue in Australia, with ongoing investment into solutions that might help address workforce deficits in rural areas. Rural placement programs effectively promote positive attitudes and open up possibilities for rural careers among university students of all health disciplines.
For many years, WACRH has systematically collected data on allied health and nursing students taking rural placements, including a questionnaire provided to students at the commencement and end of their placement.
The aim of the research project is to use this information to investigate how students’ perspectives on rural health careers are influenced by their experiences during rural placements, by other various aspects of the placements (e.g., placement type and length), and by characteristics of the students themselves.
Please contact the researchers for further information: Dr Sandra Thompson, Dr John Woods, Kathryn Fitzgerald, Rohan Rasiah, Lenny Papertalk.