RAHMS

John Flynn Placement Program

If you’re in Medicine, Social Work, Psychology, Optometry or Health & Exercise Science and want a taste of rural life, there are a variety of schemes and scholarships for you! See the NSW Rural Doctors Network for a fantastic search engine. Don’t be put off by “doctor” in the title - every health related discipline is included! Check out the variety of disciplines too, if you are interested in a career change or further study.

Reports from RAHMS members will be available very soon!  These include:

John Flynn Placement Program

Working HUGS

NSW Rural Allied Health Clinical Placement Grant

Rural Australian Medical Undergraduate Scholarship Placements

Medical Rural Bonded Scholarship (MRBS)

MRBS

The MRBS was begun by the Australian Government as part of a wider strategy to increase the numbers of rural and remote doctors. 100 places are made each year, worth $23 686 (indexed annually).

This is an excellent opportunity if you’re a city kid definitely wanting to go rural, and would not be able to support yourself at uni otherwise. It’s a big decision to make: six years of work in a rural or remote area once you have your postgrad training under your belt (ie. you’ve specialised as a surgeon, GP, O&G). This is a good 11-16 years away, and so 17-22 years before you complete the contract. There is talk that the more remote you work, the shorter your commitment, but this is still in the works.

You really need to be certain you want to work outside a big metro hospital or flash private rooms on the North Shore. Otherwise, rural or remote encompasses a lot of choice, from Broken Hill to idyllic Coffs. While there are big teaching hospitals, geography does limit the specialties you can focus on - if you want to be a specialist cardiac transplant surgeon or pediatric neurosurgeon, you’re best sticking to the city. Other factors to consider are partners or potential partners who may not be able to work in a rural area, wishing to go overseas, or need to stay near family.

But there are perks: The scholarship is sufficient to pay your fees, accommodation, bills and groceries each year. You are financially secure for six years of study without the need to fit in work around a constantly changing full-time timetable. You can apply to attend conferences all over Australia (although this is getting harder as there are more scholars) fully funded. There is increasing mentoring support via RRMEO with discussion groups on a variety of topics.

Don’t be blindsided by the money, make sure you look at other options and think about where you want to be in twenty years.

For more info, including the contract, see the Department of Health & Ageing