Faculty staff and rural placement supervisors' pre‐ and post‐placement perceptions of a clinical rural placement programme in NSW Australia

Abstract

Introduction Staff views on a rural clinical placement involving 4th year dental undergraduates from the University of Sydney (Australia) were collected in order to monitor whether the programme was feasible and acceptable to the academic Faculty Staff and the rural clinical supervisors. Materials and methods An evaluation of the rural placement programme was undertaken in 2009 at three rural sites in New South Wales (Australia). Semi‐structured pre‐ and post‐placement in person interviews recorded the views of three University Faculty Staff whilst similar data were collected by telephone interviews for three supervising clinicians at the rural clinical sites. Interviews gathered opinions on the organisation, implementation and outcomes of the rural placement programme. Results Eight qualitative analysis identified themes were specified and included communication, programme duration, effect on students and staff, benefits of the programme, rural intentions, programme sustainability and the success of the programme. Positive pre‐placement aspects were potentially good clinical experience, new environment, sharing of knowledge and interaction with a rural community. Negative issues were anxieties about students' clinical ability to offer a service, missing lectures and maintaining clinical training quotas. The post‐placement themes were generally positive; staff reported that the students enjoyed the rural community experience, their communication and clinical skills improved. Conclusion According to the staff, the placement programme was feasible and provided acceptable positive clinical and personal development for the students. This research will help educators planning to incorporate a rural clinical programme into a University curriculum.

A longitudinal evaluation of the Rural Clinical Placement Program at the University of Sydney Dental School

“…These reviews suggest that further research is required to assess the impact of rural training programs on career intentions and record the actual employment locations of graduates' post-qualification. 16 The responses of the initial cohort of the RCPP (2009) have been reported previously, [18][19][20][21] and the general findings were that the program provided an effective clinical and educational experience, with students reporting increased clinical confidence and time management skills. 18,19 In addition, an initial evaluation indicated an increased number of RCPP participants considered working in a rural location.…”

“…The organisation and content of the RCPP program have been reported in detail elsewhere. [18][19][20] In summary, final year dental students are offered the opportunity to participate in a four-week clinical rotation in a Faculty approved rural clinic in NSW. The rotation includes supervision by a University Faculty trained rural practicing clinician.…”

Exploration of the factors that influence new Australian dental graduates to work rurally and their perspectives of rural versus metropolitan employment

“…Previous evaluations reported the RCPP increased the students' time management and clinical confidence skills and was a quality programme that provided an important educational and rural experience. 19,23,24 It was also reported that the students expressed increased intentions to work in a rural position following participation in the RCPP. 19,23 In terms of workforce updates of the 2009 graduates, multiple follow-ups have been completed, with a higher proportion of individuals who completed the RCPP working in a rural location in 2011, with n = 13, 44.8% and in 2012 n = 13, 43.3%, compared to non-RCPP participants n = 8, 17% in 2011, and n = 7, 14.9% in 2012.…”

The workforce outcomes of dental graduates from a metropolitan school ‘Rural Clinical Placement Program’ versus a ‘Rural Clinical School’

“…The USYD course includes the RCPP, which began in 2009, and involves a 4‐week rural clinical placement in various locations in NSW for final‐year dental students. The program has been reported to provide a valuable clinical training experience, leading to increased intentions of working rurally and positively impacting on rural workforce outcomes.…”