Medical students and doctors seeking rural and regional study and work are now supported to see how they can live, work and train rurally to achieve their dream career.
A website that maps the major specialty pathways and shows training places locally across regional NSW, VIC, TAS and South East SA has launched additional fact sheets. The site acts as a one-stop shop, showing users their future training requirements and to identify the local health services offering them.
The Regional Medical Training (RMT) website regionalmedicaltraining.com.au is the result of a collaboration of 11 universities with Rural Clinical Schools and Regional Training Hubs in the regions.
It is a shared initiative to support local graduates to stay rural and is funded by the Federal Department of Health’s Rural Health Multidisciplinary Training Program.
RMT Working Group and Southern Regional Training Hub Alliance chair Associate Professor Janelle Brennan said with 24 medical specialty pathways and accredited placements mapped, the website increased its capacity as a one-stop shop for medical students and trainees investigating career and training study options in the Limestone Coast.
“The new additions to the website are updated General Practice and Rural Generalist fact sheets, with Cardiology, Respiratory Medicine and Nephrology newly joining 21 other medical training pathways found across regional Tasmania, Victoria and NSW, as well as the Limestone Coast region of South Australia,” she said.
“This complements the extensive resources already included on the site,” she said.
“Regional Medical Training’s unique search portal maps out regional training futures that can be searched by either location or specialty.
“If you’re particularly keen to live in a specific regional location you can search by region or, alternatively, if you are focused on pursuing a particular medical specialty you can enter it into the map engine and all of the regional towns and cities where you can train are documented.
“This is a big boost for visibility of rural training opportunities and works to attract doctors to the regions.
“Here on the Limestone Coast there are multiple specialty pathways that graduating medical students and local trainees can pursue at a local level.”
Limestone Coast Local Health Network Emergency Medicine Staff Specialist and Flinders University Clinical Educator Dr Lauren Kennedy said she was excited by the increasing training opportunities that Regional Medical Training showcases to students and trainees.
“The website presents information for students and junior doctors in a clear and well organised manner – and all in the one place,” she said.
“It’s very easy to work out what’s available in a location and to get information on the specialties as well.
“I am looking forward to seeing the options in Mount Gambier increase over the next 12 months or so – it’s definitely an exciting time to be involved in junior doctor training and education here.”
Local Medical Intern Dr Vienna Tran said she appreciated how valuable the website would be for her colleagues and fellow medical peers.
“The visual map of the specialty pathways is a big plus, as is the trove of stories showcasing current regional medical trainees and students pursuing their careers in the regions,” she said.
“The Regional Medical Training website is an excellent, user-friendly resource that has made me aware of valuable training opportunities, not only in South Australia but also in the surrounding states.
“It provides comprehensive summaries, both in webpage and printable formats, of a large and diverse range of career pathways, which means I do not need to go searching on individual college websites for the same information.”
On top of the current 24 specialty training pathways currently showcased on the website, more will be added over the coming months, including Urology and Addiction Medicine.
