University of Tasmania, Australia

Terms of Reference

Goal: Contributes to the development of School of Medicine courses and programs that prepare graduates with necessary experiences, knowledge, skills and attributes appropriate for the complexity of Indigenous health care and rural practice.

Specifically, the Working Party shall facilitate:

1. Students' experience in rural practice relevant to the profession
2. Students' appreciation of Indigenous health care issues and experience in providing Indigenous health care
3. Students' exposure to the range of practice options in rural and remote regions
4. Preparation of teachers in the role of facilitator in educational settings in rural and remote regions, and
5. Administer Rural Undergraduate Support and Coordination (RUSC) program funding

To fulfil these requirements, this Working Party will oversee or faciliate the:

• Definition of a coherent set of learning experiences and outcomes for rural medicine and Indigenous health to be embedded within the MBBS curriculum
• Assessment of health care practices and oversee the placement of students in rural and remote practices and Indigenous health care settings
• Liaison with the relevant Assessment Working Party/s to prepare appropriate assessment for Indigenous health and rural medicine electives and placements
• Liaison with the Evaluation Working Party to ensure evaluation and monitoring of the quality of rural and Indigenous health curriculum, experiences and placements
• Liaison with relevant student support groups
• Liaison with the Medical Education Unit (MEU) to plan staff development for health care practitioners in developing appropriate skills to facilitate and assess student learning in rural, remote and Indigenous settings, and
• Efficient and effective allocation of financial and human resources to the RUSC program; develop budgets and workplans, and implement and evaluate RUSC-funded initiatives

Membership

The Rural and Indigenous Health Committee has the following membership: