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Community welcome for future doctors training on North West Coast

Study | Newsroom

The University of Tasmania’s Rural Clinical School (RCS) hosted a community event at Cradle Coast Campus in Burnie to mark the arrival of the new Year 4 and Year 5 students.

The event showcased the advantages of living, working and studying on the Coast, and representatives from the community, health sector and government met with current students.

Professor Lizzi Shires, Director of the RCS said the event made the students feel welcome and help them to settle on the Coast.

“The RCS is excited to be welcoming 47 new and returning medical students to the North-West for the clinical years of their study,” Dr Shires said.

“We are particularly excited to welcome our cohort of seven third year students to their clinical years. Most of our third years have undertaken their entire degree so far in the North and North West.

“Over the next year, our students will be working in our communities to develop their medical skills and knowledge and work in community-based programs.

“We have hosted a Community Welcome annually for over 15 years but the last three years we have had to cancel it due to COVID. This year’s event will be particularly engaging for all involved through a speed networking format.

“Students will rotate through different rooms, giving them opportunities to meet community groups and find out about the region’s culture and activities.

“They will also meet health professionals including GPs and many of our alumni who are now furthering their postgraduate training locally as doctors.

“The event is a celebration of all that the North-West Coast has to offer and we hope it shows our students the many rewarding aspects of where a rural health career can take them.”

The recipients of a local scholarship will also be announced and congratulated.

The Rotary Club of Wynyard Scholarship in Rural Medicine is awarded to a student with an interest in rural medicine who is commencing the final two years of their study in the North-West.

The Community Welcome activities will be followed by cocktail style dining.