The University of Queensland Regional Training Wide Bay Hub (RTHWB) has welcomed new doctors to the area with an official reception at the Bundaberg Art Gallery.
RTHWB Senior Academic Clinician, Dr Steve Flecknoe-Brown said in order to retain doctors in regional areas it was important they experience the real benefits of living here.
“Feeling part of the community is a highlight of rural practice that doctors notice and appreciate,” Dr Flecknoe-Brown said.
“We find many doctors feel truly welcomed for the first time in their lives in a city like Bundaberg, which is why we commit to hosting this event each year,” he said.
Creating a sustainable future medical workforce
The University of Queensland Regional Training Hubs are an initiative of the Australian Government Department of Health, and are aimed at creating a sustainable future medical workforce in remote, regional and rural Australia.
“The UQ Regional Training Hug Wide Bay provides great opportunities for medical graduates interested in rural careers by providing doctors with broader experience and better supervision than in metropolitan hospitals,” he said.
Wide Bay Hospital and Health Service Acting Chief Executive Debbie Carroll agreed last night’s welcome event was a wonderful opportunity to help the new medical practitioners become part of the local community.
“Feeling at home in Bundaberg is really important for our young doctors, and establishing these strong links with the community helps them settle into their new career faster,” Ms Carroll said.
“It encourages them to choose Bundaberg as a place to live and practice, and enables our health service to create a sustainable local medical workforce,” she said.
Regional Training Hub establishes local ties
Evidence shows junior doctors who establish ties with a local community are more likely to continue their career in the area and return once they’ve completed speciality training. This in turn benefits our patients through continuity of care from a stable workforce of experienced doctors.
James Cook University (JCU) General Practice Training Wide Bay Medical Educator, Dr Amanda Kasper said JCU was equally excited to welcome several new general practice trainees onto the medical program in this region.
“We have registrars placed in general practices right across the Wide Bay and North Burnett and some have chosen to extend their specialty training to include advanced skills such as mental health, obstetrics and gynaecology, emergency medicine and internal medicine,” Dr Kasper said.
“We hope they thoroughly enjoy their training and this amazing part of the world, and choose to stay in our region providing much needed services for our community,” she said.
The event was a collaboration between The UQ Regional Training Hub Wide Bay, Wide Bay Hospital and Health Service, James Cook University and Bundaberg Regional Council.
For more information on the Regional Training Hub Wide Bay please visit the website.
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