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In a first for the North West, University of Tasmania medical students are undertaking their first clinical placements within residential aged care. Provider OneCare hopes that hosting the students will help secure critical medical skills for the industry – and the program may inform the development of a national model.
The eight third-year students from the university’s Tasmanian School of Medicine Rural Clinical School in Burnie are undertaking a five-week placement at OneCare’s Umina Park in Shorewell Park, which is the largest residential aged care facility in Tasmania.
With an ageing population and service demand outpacing the supply of skilled workers, OneCare’s CEO, Pete Williams said the placements were an innovative way for the not-for-profit to attract doctors to its facilities.
“The aged care sector has a real challenge securing GPs and specialist geriatrician support, especially in rural and regional areas, and yet it’s rare for med students to do an aged care placement,” he said.
“Our goal is to introduce students to the complexity and value of aged care early in their studies, encouraging them to consider the sector as a meaningful career path.
“Caring for the health of older people can be challenging, with age-related conditions such as dementia, mobility, nutrition and managing medications often in play. Doctors need to coordinate care with other specialists and allied health services, as well as our facility nurses and staff.
“It’s also an incredibly rewarding field of practice, where you are embedded in the community and build long-term relationships with older Tasmanians who have so much life experience to share.
“We’re very focused on a consumer-led approach to our residents’ care, considering their physical, mental and social needs, and always prioritising choice and dignity. This is important experience for medical students to gain early in their practical studies and take into their careers.”
Professor Ruth Kearon, Head of the Tasmanian School of Medicine said clinical placements are an integral part of training for medical students, as they provide invaluable practical experience in rural health workforce settings.
“The expansion of our medicine program, from start to finish, on the North West helps build local training pathways for doctors in the region which is essential to securing future workforce needs,” she said.
“Our new medical programme ensures that students spend most of their first clinical year learning their medical skills in the community. We recognised doctors of the future need to have the skills to work in the community and manage complex patients outside the hospital setting.
“Training doctors in an aged care setting at the start of their medical training will enable them to support and manage elderly patients throughout their career.
“We have increased the number of students training on the coast to meet the workforce shortage. Medical students can now study their entire medical degree on the NW, with Launceston soon to offer the same. These important placements help train and retain doctors of the future.”
Senior Lecturer at The Rural Clinical School, Dr Jess Andrewartha, said the placement students are supported and trained by staff at Umina Park, local GPs and specialists.
“The students learn about patient centred care and working as part of a much larger team to develop their clinical skills. The residents and staff have been amazing, the students have been welcomed into the facility and learnt so much medicine in such a short time.”
Umina Park hosted both nursing and medical students for two of the five weeks, with the students collaborating and presenting on cases together.
OneCare began supporting medical student placements last year, building on growing engagement with the University across disciplines including nursing, speech therapy, physiotherapy, social work, paramedicine, and now medicine. The next step will be to host first-year medical students at Umina Park as part of a new programme, where students can complete their training from start to finish on the NW coast.
The Royal Australian College of General Practitioners (RACGP) Rural Council has shown interest in the placement model, exploring how it could be broadened nationally.
“It’s been fantastic to work with the University on these placements and have a cohort of bright, motivated young people through Umina Park to learn from our residents and staff, while bringing fresh perspectives and an innovative mindset,” said OneCare CEO Pete Williams.
“We’re really excited about the prospect of our placement program forming the basis of a national model, together with the RACGP.
“I applaud the efforts of our Chief Clinical Officer and Regional Clinical Services Manager in building collaborative professional relationships with UTAS to elevate aged care awareness in medical students.”
Assoc. Prof. Michael Clements (centre) from the Royal Australian College of General Practitioners (RACGP) together with University of Tasmania medical students and staff and OneCare Regional Clinical Services Manager Nicole Ledger (far left).
