<p>Immersive placement experiences promote rural intent in allied health students of urban and rural origin</p>

Abstract

IntroductionPre-vocational placement experiences are known to considerably influence the career preferences of health graduates and are a key factor in growing the rural allied health workforce. This paper explores the rural placement experiences and future work intentions of students who attended a placement with the University of Newcastle Department of Rural Health.MethodsPart of a larger longitudinal mixed methods study of students’ placement experiences and subsequent career choices, this study explored students’ placement evaluations responses. Following each placement, students were invited to complete an online survey which asked about their placement experiences and future work intentions. Counts and proportion tests were performed for frequencies of quantitative variables. Wilcoxon signed rank tests were conducted on the paired pre- and post-rural intent scores to determine any perceived differences in intent before and after placement for students both with and without a rural background. Qualitative data from short answer questions were analyzed thematically guided by qualitative content analysis. Data were comparatively analyzed for students of a rural or urban background.ResultsFour hundred and forty end of placement surveys were completed by 275 students (response rate 69.8%). There was a positive shift in intention to work rurally for students of both rural and urban background post-placement, but this was only statistically significant in the group from an urban background (p≤0.001). From the qualitative analysis three themes emerged: immersed rural supported placement experience, immersed interaction in rural life with other students, and immersed interaction in the rural community. Students from both rural and urban backgrounds indicated similar benefits and challenges.ConclusionWhile the positive impact of rural placement experiences and rural background on future rural practice is well known, this study highlights the importance of positive supported placement experience for students from both rural and urban backgrounds.

‘They are inconveniencing us’ - exploring how gaps in patient education and patient centred approaches interfere with TB treatment adherence: perspectives from patients and clinicians in the Free State Province, South Africa

“…Finally, the insufficiencies of the patient-clinician relationship are brought into question. Patient counselling remains a critical element in reducing LTFU [38] reducing LTFU pointing to integrated behavioural counselling and TB care promoting adherence to treatment protocols [41,42]. Clinicians require knowledge of TB disease and its management and excellent communications skills to ensure quality patient education and communication [43,44].…”

Profile and rural exposure for nursing and allied health students at two Australian Universities: A retrospective cohort study

“…Existing evidence shows that rural background is apparently the most strongly influential factor on graduates' choice of rural practice location 10‐12,21‐23 . However, rural practice intentions at commencement of studies 14‐16,20,21 and exposure to rural health care settings during their education and training 8,10,14,23,24,29 are also key indicators of postgraduate rural practice. Indeed, some studies have suggested that rural placement experience might be a stronger predictor of rural practice intentions than rural background 19,24 .…”

Beyond the black stump: rapid reviews of health research issues affecting regional, rural and remote Australia

“…Twenty‐seven articles (53%) focused on education strategies: student placements and internships ( n = 16), decentralised education ( n = 7), and creating a rural pipeline ( n = 4) (, Table 4.2) 14-40 . Studies examining different modes of undergraduate program delivery were conducted in most countries.…”