David Campbell reports on the first education forum for the year which agreed that career decisions rather than graduate intentions will provide a better measure of the Rural Clinical School program’s success.

The first education forum for the 2014 year was held at the School of Rural Health – East Gippsland in Bairnsdale on 18 March. The topic of the forum was the Graduate Tracking Project conducted by the School of Rural Health. This is an important project that will demonstrate the effectiveness of the Rural Clinical School program in contributing to rural medical workforce.

Data gathered from both the Medical Schools Outcomes Database (MSOD) and the rural clinical school graduate intentions survey conducted by FRAME (Federation of Rural Australian Medical Educators) will contribute to Monash’s Graduate Tracking project.

This education forum provided an opportunity for academic representatives of the school’s north-west and south-east education committees to examine the details of the Graduate Tracking project and discuss the next steps in the project.

Presentations from Natalie Radomski, Laura Major and Helen Chambers set the scene for the forum. Natalie presented a comprehensive overview of recent literature from other Rural Clinical Schools in Australia on factors related to their own data on graduate outcomes and intentions; and Laura and Helen provided an update of the FRAME and MSOD data projects.

Delegates then broke into three groups to discuss aspects of the Graduate Tracking project, with a view to recommendations for achievable future steps for the project.

It was generally acknowledged that the Rural Clinical School program has reached a point where we are only beginning to be able to measure data on long-term career decisions of graduates. It was agreed that career decisions are a far more powerful indicator of the success or otherwise of the Rural Clinical School program than career intentions of students or recent graduates.

It was therefore agreed by delegates to the forum that the current MSOD and FRAME databases will be examined from the perspective of their ability to demonstrate data on long-term career decisions; in addition, data sets such as the current AHPRA (Australian Health Professional Registration Agency) database and the Monash University alumni database will be examined and perhaps utilised if they are able to provide information on career choices of Rural Clinical School graduates.

It was agreed that this activity will be taken forward by the SRH Rural MBBS Graduate Tracking project working group.

Many thanks to all those who contributed to the success of this forum, including members of the planning group; special thanks to Deb Johnston and staff at Bairnsdale for hosting the forum, and the magnificent catering!

David Campbell, Director
School of Rural Health – East and South Gippsland

Special guests: left to right - Professor Ben Canny; Dr Doris Paton; Cr Mark Reeves, Mayor East Gippsland Shire Council; Associate Professor Sue Berry, NOSM; Dr David Campbell, Dr Brad Martin

A sit-down dinner for 40 people kicked off the year for students based in Bairnsdale on Tuesday 18 February.

Guest speaker, Professor Ben Canny gave an overview of the current MBBS program, plans to introduce an MD (Doctor of Medicine) program and the impact that will have in the long-term on students studying medicine at Monash.

Dr Brad Martin, who spent his Year 4 at Bairnsdale in 2006, reflected on his pathway from student to doctor. We sincerely hope that Brad and his wife, Simone, also a Monash alumna, continue to return to the East Gippsland area to visit if not to settle and become a permanent part of the medical scene in the area.

Special guests included Associate Professor Sue Berry Integrated Clinical Learning – Division of Clinical Sciences at the Northern Ontario School of Medicine; Head of School, Professor Judi Walker; and the newly elected Mayor of the East Gippsland Shire, Cr Mark Reeves. Among the guests were local medical clinicians and staff of the Bairnsdale site.

Students gave a short bio of themselves through which we learned we should be able to form a choir and/or band such are the varied talents of the Bairnsdale students.

Student welcomes are a tradition set to continue given the response from students and guests from Sale, Bairnsdale and Leongatha to the catering, the friendly faces and the anticipation of what the year will involve.

Jimmy checks out resources in the library

Preparations are underway for Simulation Week (3-9 May) which is open to anyone who has a news story or video which highlights their work with simulation. The aim of Simulation week is to promote community and organisation simulation activities and to celebrate achievements of programs, both local and international.

Laurea Atkinson, the Project Officer for the Simulation Learning Environment at the Bairnsdale site of the School of Rural Health has been working hard on a project which highlights the work of the SLE locally including the outreach program. Her new ‘student’ Jimmy has been orientated to the Bairnsdale site, getting to know the staff and learning about opportunities for involvement in simulation and other health education activities. Jimmy is very excited by the prospect of being a “student” at the site. “There is a lot to take in,” he says, “but I am excited by what there is to offer here for students and I am looking forward very much to my time at Bairnsdale.”

There will be more news about Jimmy and Simulation Week in a future edition of Rural Health Matters.

In-house training for staff at Orbost Regional Health, and other regional health services, has been made possible through collaboration with the Simulated Learning Environment project. Nurse educators Jules Stone and Jo Marshall from Orbost borrowed equipment including the IV arm, Peter PICC and Little Anne. Bairnsdale-based project officer for the Simulation Learning Environment, Laurea Atkinson, has supported training with the staff of the health service with a visit taking an additional advanced life support mannequin.

Visits and equipment sharing are an important aspect of the outreach part of the project and makes training and updating of skills possible for those health professionals in rural and remote areas.

Cross section: participants in the workshop included from left to right - Kerryn (Omeo), Annette (Advance TAFE Bairnsdale), Marnie, Beth (Federation University), Jules (Orbost), Carmel (Advance TAFE), Jenny (MUDRIH social worker), Caroline(Bairnsdale Regional Health Service nurse educator).

A cross section of health professionals and teachers came together for a two-day simulation theory and practical workshop in Bairnsdale in February. A paramedic, social worker and nurse educators joined representatives from Advance TAFE, Federation University and Bairnsdale’s own clinical site academic coordinator, Marnie Connolly. The workshop was funded by Health Workforce Australia as part of the NHET-Sim (National Health Education and Training in Simulation) Program.

Checking progress: left to right - Tracie Andrews, Laurea Atkinson, Marnie Connolly, Mat Jenkins

Representatives of the Department of Health, Victoria visited the School of Rural Health’s Bairnsdale education centre in early March. The visit was a first for Simulation Learning Environment lead, Tracie Andrews, and Gippsland Project Officer, Mat Jenkins, who wanted to establish how the project was progressing with updates in the rural sector.

Marnie Connolly and Laurea Atkinson met with Tracie and Mat who toured the facility and held discussions around sustainability of simulation into the future. They were particularly impressed with the innovation of the Ambulance Community Officer training program instigated by Terry Houge and Scott Fyfe and supported by Laurea, where simulation training is done on site and reciprocated as a simulation outreach program to Mallacoota.

Year 4C students at Swifts Creek with Sue Carroll, Bush Nurse at the Centre

Deb Johnston reports on the Year 4C orientation trip to the mountainous region north of Bairnsdale.

As part of the Year 4C orientation week, students were introduced to Omeo Hospital and Clinic and Swifts Creek Bush Nursing Centre where they will be spending up to two weeks each during the year.

At 8.30am all boarded the bus, driven by our experienced bus driver Deb Johnston (alias Regional Manager East & South Gippsland, ably assisted by the East Gippsland tour guide (alias Marnie Connolly Year 4C Academic Coordinator). Knowing the road is quite curvaceous a frequently (on this road) requested spew bucket was also packed.

The morning dawned as all mornings do in East Gippsland – nothing but blue skies and sunshine – as we headed north-west, with Marnie doing the tour guide job to perfection. We arrived at the Omeo Hospital in time for a tour of the hospital and clinic by Tracey Ah Sam the Medical Centre Office Manager and Annie Kissane the practice nurse.

Students were introduced to staff they would be training with and Tracey told of the many things they could experience whilst on placement: snow at Mt Hotham, horse riding, fishing, white water rafting, bush walking, bike riding and the many community nights held locally. Some students wondered how they would manage to squeeze in their clinic time with all that was on offer. The Omeo Hospital staff supplied us a morning tea of pancakes and savoury scones. We then checked out the student accommodation, said our goodbyes and headed back via Cassilis (the more scenic route) to Swifts Creek for a tour of the Bush Nursing Centre with bush nurse Sue Carroll.

Students will attend Swifts Creek Bush Nursing twice a week and Ensay once a week with the GP from Omeo as part of their placement. Sue outlined what the centre does, the type of patients they see and the distances they travel, and spoke about some of her more hair raising experiences. Sue joined us for lunch but had to be back by 1.30pm to commence student vaccinations.

We then boarded the bus for the trip home. Not many of the students will remember the trip home as all but one slept. We arrived back in Bairnsdale by 4.00pm and, due to the bus driver’s skill at the wheel, the infamous bucket sat gathering dust.

Deb Johnston, Manager, School of Rural Health – East & South Gippsland

2014 student group from both Monash University and Federation University

Delivery of the nursing program at the School of Rural Health – East Gippsland education centre at Bairnsdale continues following the transition of Monash’s Churchill campus to Federation University in January. The program has been well established over the last two and a half years. This year sees 14 students in Bairnsdale – 10 Monash students who enrolled before the changeover and four from Federation University.

Nursing educator/coordinator, Beth Jacob, said the transition has been a smooth one as the program for both groups of students is identical. The nursing program will continue in Bairnsdale after the last Monash students graduate, with Federation University students using Monash’s tutorial rooms and skills lab.

The School of Rural Health – East Gippsland education centre in Bairnsdale will host a special forum  – Just Looking @ Careers in Health – in April to encourage local students, and Indigenous students in particular, to consider a career in health.

This innovative approach to health education is being run in partnership with KIKASS (Keeping Indigenous Kids at Secondary School), a high school support program for Indigenous students at Bairnsdale Secondary College run by the Smith Family.

Students will be given a tour of the school, visit the skills lab and be trained in basic life support with the help of Jimmy, the hi-tech mannequin. They will also hear from nurses, doctors and students about careers in health and have the opportunity to ask questions in a small group setting.

Practice nurses in East Gippsland had the opportunity to update skills at the first Practice Nurse Education Group (PNEG) program workshop in February.

The Practice Nurse Education Group program (based at the School of Rural Health – East Gippsland in Bairnsdale) has been running for the last three years. Designed to give medical practice nurses up-to-date training opportunities, the program is coordinated by Marnie Connolly (Year 4C academic coordinator in Bairnsdale). Participants travel from rural and remote areas of Gippsland to attend, so the workshops provide a positive networking opportunity as well.

February’s workshop focused on basic life support with theoretical and practical workshops which covered an update on Australian Resuscitation Council guidelines and CPR techniques for all age groups, automated external defibrillation (AED) and choking. Robyn Adams from the Gippsland and East Gippsland Aboriginal Cooperative joined Marnie in presenting February’s workshop.

The regular workshops are delivered with the support of local medical practitioners and nurse educators who run the topic discussions and instruction. Previous topics have included management of asthma, structured approach to psychiatric emergencies, and principles of diabetics and its management. Each workshop is evaluated and the feedback is taken into account in developing future workshops. Previous comments noted that the workshops provide positive reinforcement of existing knowledge and cover gaps in knowledge. SimMan received a special mention when he was introduced as a learning tool.