Bendigo’s Helen Cronin is pictured at her Mildura writing workshop with Desley-Reid-Orr and Ros Hocking.

Editors please note: This is published verbatim with reasons contained therein.

Bendigo’s Helen Cronin travelled to Mildura on 25^th November to conduct her ‘Writing killer content’ workshop for the SRH Mildura staff.

The nine members of staff who attended were often lost for words while focusing on Helen’s killer strategies, tips and tricks, but came away with a renewed enthusiasm for the written word.

In a day of team bonding, communication and information sharing, staff learned valuable new skills such as devising catchy headlines, the summative ‘who, what, why, when, where and how’ messages, targeting an audience and using the correct register – and that was just before lunch!

In a hands-on teaching manoeuvre, Helen illustrated the term ‘register’ by drawing on a range of writing styles from Grahame’s Wind in the Willows to a 19^th century legal document. Those attending were asked to give their impression of whether the various documents were written in informal, standard or formal register (language) which in itself incited some hilarious exchanges and colourful language.

It is the writer’s intent to couch this report in an informal tone, however readers will have to judge the success or otherwise of that endeavour for themselves; it is in fact the result of a joint exercise by those who attended and we now warn you to watch out for the latest in ‘killer-content’ in a SRH Mildura publication coming soon.

Director of SRH Mildura Associate Professor Fiona Wright and Associate Professor Ian Pettigrew at the annual dinner in Mildura.

Assoc Prof Ian Pettigrew retires

Associate Professor Ian Pettigrew was officially farewelled at the annual SRH Mildura thank-you dinner held in Mildura late October.

Ian was appointed to the position of Associate Professor in Rural Obstetrics and Gynaecology, arriving in Mildura in 2002. Since that time, he has been involved in teaching medical students and training rural GPs, as well as providing outreach and educational services to towns in the Murray River region.

Ian has conducted a private consulting practice while also setting the timetables, rosters and schedules for those students undertaking their Women’s Health rotations in Year 4C in Mildura and acting as the discipline head for the NVRMEN (Northern Victoria Rural Medical Education Network program.

Wife Mandy has been invaluable as the go-to person to tweak changes to timetables, producing the rosters each week for students.

Ian is now looking forward to retirement. When asked for his fondest memories or proudest moments, Ian said: “I have enjoyed being involved with the students and working with a great group of colleagues at the clinical school.”

Graduates: Kendall Livingstone, Judi Lawless, Tracey Minster and Jo Kingsley successfully completed their accounting studies.

A number of dedicated School of Rural Health personnel recently celebrated an impressive professional development achievement.

Kendall Livingstone from SRH Mildura, along with Tracey Minster,  Judi Lawless and Jo Kingsley all based in Gippsland, completed their Certificate IV of Accounting and Diploma of Accounting.

The women celebrated with their classmates at a graduation ceremony and afternoon tea on 10 September at Monash University’s Caulfield campus.

All four had attended 12 workshops and finished 12 intensive assignments as well as four Recognised Prior Learning (RPL) modules while juggling busy work and home lives.

Congratulations also to Michelle Ryan who completed her Certificate IV in Bookkeeping.

The women chose to undertake this study to build on their existing skills and knowledge of finance and accounting. Their enhanced expertise in all facets of financial reporting, budgeting and the legal context of accounting is expected to deliver genuine benefits to SRH.

Faking it: Mildura-based clinical educators learn how to simulate wounds

School of Rural Health (SRH) clinical educators hosted their counterparts from Latrobe University and Mildura Base Hospital recently to learn the unique art of moulage at a training session in the SRH Mildura Clinical Simulation Centre.

Moulage involves the application of mock injuries for the purposes of simulating real-world experience. It is widely used to train health care professionals and military personnel in emergency medical responses.

Moulage achieves realistic simulations of injuries and medical conditions. Wounds, fractures, amputations, gunshot wounds, burns and various diseases can all be realistically portrayed.

The impact of work place accidents, violent crime, motor vehicle accidents, terrorism, nuclear, biological and chemical weapons of mass destruction and other medical emergencies are also simulated through the use of moulage.

Laerdal Australia, a renowned provider of training for lifesaving and emergency medical care, introduced the use of moulage modelling to the Mildura-based professionals.

Among some of the very realistic wounds produced by participants on the day were those created by Clinical Skills Lecturer Howard Cook who wore his proudly, for all to admire.

Participants responded positively to the training, with everyone keen to try some modelling of their own. The success of the event leaves Mildura well positioned to become a centre for future moulage training.

Delegation of women from Myanmar visiting SRH Mildura

A GROUP of women from Myanmar (Republic of the Union of Myanmar) hope the  information they gained from a visit to Mildura will help improve community health issues in their country.

The 19 senior representatives of Myanmar’s health sector were hosted for three days by Monash School of Rural Health Mildura.

Organised by the Monash Sustainability Institute, the 10-week visit to Victoria was funded by a range of organisations including the Australian and Myanmar Governments, and the United Nations.

The women have been to various Monash campuses including hospitals and rural health care facilities. Monash researchers are keen to learn about current issues in Myanmar community health while the Myanmar group is learning of Monash initiatives in community health and related areas.

The group included doctors, allied health professionals and representatives of non-government organisations (NGOs) with specific interests in maternal and child health.

According to the Head of the School of Rural Health Professor Judi Walker, maternal and child health, and HIV/AIDS present serious health issues in Myanmar.

‘However, mortality and serious illness can often be prevented through adoption of primary health care interventions,” Prof Walker said.

The first day in Mildura saw the visiting fellows tour the Mildura clinical school which included time in the simulation and women’s health training facilities. There was discussion on the role this equipment has in the education of medical students, junior doctors and allied health professionals. This equipment is not generally available in Myanmar and the chance to simulate various obstetric scenarios was a valuable learning opportunity for the delegates.

They also toured the Mildura Base Hospital and at dinner that night, spoke to local medical students about HIV/AIDS issues in Myanmar.

The evening, hosted by Associated Professor Ian Pettigrew, saw final year medical students from Monash University on placement in Mildura discuss differing healthcare perspectives and approaches to medical practice with members of the delegation. Areas of particular interest for students included the allocation of healthcare resources, access to medical treatment within rural Myanmar, and prevalence of infectious diseases, in particular the prevalence of HIV within Myanmar and means of disease prevention and management.

A highlight of the evening was a performance by the delegates of the traditional Myanmar Village Renewal dance. Performed in authentic Myanmar dress, the dance involved highly coordinated hand movements, highlighting the connection with cultural traditions and values that remain an important factor in their lives and work as healthcare professionals.

Mallee District Aboriginal Services (MDAS) hosted the group on the following day which included a visit to Coomealla Health Aboriginal Corporation. The final day saw a visit to the Robinvale Medical Clinic followed by a cruise on the River Murray.

Professor Walker said understanding the social context in which community health care was extended was as important as understanding conventional medical practice.

“Monash and Myanmar will establish an enduring collaborative relationship which is responsive to improved health outcomes,” she added.

Arrangements for the Myanmar visitors were organised by SRH Mildura’s Regional Manager,” Kendall Livingstone. “It was a pleasure to meet these outstanding women and we hope that one day some of them may return to Mildura for a follow-up visit,” she said.

Wildfire Halfway Event in Mildura

The Wildfire Halfway Event in Mildura was the first of its kind organised by Wildfire in Mildura. Immediately following our mid-year exam, the Year 3 students headed down the Murray River on a very generous local consultant’s paddle steamer. After an enjoyable half hour trip up the river, and with no help from the student whose job it was to tie up the boat, we moored the boat and sat down for some lunch. Following some good unwinding time and chowing down on everything from flathead to chicken parmas to arancini balls, we headed back down the river to Mildura, stuffed to the brim and ready for a holiday.

The halfway event was a social event exemplifying the rural lifestyle and provided a focal point for celebrating making it half way through our lengthy degree. As medicine can be incredibly stressful sometimes, this provided an outlet for the students and a chance to thank the School of Rural Health Mildura staff for their hard work. It was also a rare occasion for students to ‘formally’ cease study for a short while.

SimMom in Mildura Base Hospital’s birthing suite.

SimMom arrived by wheelchair at the Mildura Base Hospital’s birthing suites.

This most advanced obstetric simulation equipment was provided by the School of Rural Health Mildura to assist with the hospital’s second annual practical obstetric multi-professional training (PROMPT) session, held in April.

SimMom provided the hospital’s nurses, midwives, obstetricians and anaesthetists with in situ practical multi-professional training on the potential real life scenario of ‘cardiac arrest following local anaesthetic toxicity’ in a familiar working environment with real life equipment.

Fifteen participants received the training with the Intensive Care Unit and Midwifery Department working together for a successful outcome in the scenario.

The SimMom mannequin was purchased with funding from the Mallee Health Foundation and normally resides in her own purpose-built room at the School of Rural Health Mildura. This is the first time she has been off Monash grounds to simulate a real life obstetric emergency and will venture out a further three times before the end of the year.

Mungo National Park: Aboriginal people have walked through this landscape for thousands of years and survived extreme climate change that dried up the lakes that were once the lifeblood of the region.

Rain failed to dampen the spirits and experiences of Year 2 medical students on their annual visit to the Mungo National Park near Mildura.

Each year, the students who visit Mildura for the Year 2 rural placement program are taken by bus to Mungo National Park in the Willandra Lakes Region World Heritage Area where they are given a tour behind the barricades with an Indigenous park ranger.

Heavy rain in the first week of the students’ placement saw the local council close the dirt road which delayed the tour by a week. The rain also forced the postponement of the school’s sports event in which many of the students participate.

This year, Mildura hosted an increased number of Year 2 students. Several new sessions were included in the busy two-week timetable. These included:

• changing the focus of the farm visit to incorporate current OH&S farm dangers such as heavy machinery, heights and mental health issues
• a panel discussion with three local patients sharing their personal health stories with an emphasis on the tyranny of distance and the impact of the lack of facilities in rural and remote areas
• School of Rural Health Mildura staff conducting interactive scenarios using the clinical skills laboratory as well as prescribing dilemmas for diabetes, and
• many of the Year 2 students participating in Teddy Bear Hospitals at local primary schools.

Year 5 MBBS student Naveen Tenneti recently completed a six-week placement with the Mallee District Aboriginal Service in Mildura and gained some new insights into rural health services.

As a medical student, you always enter your first day of a new placement with nervous anticipation.

There are two factors that will come to define your experience; the willingness of the ‘team’ to include you and the patients you are dealing with.

While the fact that no-one knew I was coming certainly did not allay my fears on the first day, my six-week placement at the Mallee District Aboriginal Service in Mildura has had a strong influence on my understanding of community and Indigenous health, and left me inspired to further my understanding of primary health care (more…)

The range of health and education programs and courses delivered in Mildura was explored at the North West Health Education & Employment Conference on 29 April.

The School of Rural Health Mildura helped sponsor the conference which looked at the health programs and courses delivered by local universities, TAFEs and registered training organisations in Mildura.

The conference focused on skills shortages, highlighting employment opportunities that exist locally for graduates.

School of Rural Health Mildura’s former director, Dr John Russell, was guest speaker and admissions processes were outlined by Jenny Phillips from the Monash MBBS Admissions Office.

Local students, Emma Sanderson and Ellen O’Connor, were part of a student Q&A panel, giving an overview of their life as a rural student and their pathway into medicine.

A mini expo was held over lunch with workshops and plenary sessions.