Kingaroy Hospital will be training six new doctors this year, thanks to a partnership with Griffith University.
The Darling Downs Hospital and Health Service (DDHHS) recently welcomed the six medical students, who are part of the university’s Rural Longlook Program, to the hospital.
The students, from the university’s Rural Clinical School, will live in Kingaroy for the next 12 months as they continue their training at Kingaroy and Cherbourg hospitals.
“We really enjoy having Longlook Program trainees and seeing them thrive while they’re with us,” Kingaroy Hospital Medical Superintendent Dr RT Lewandowski said.
“In smaller non-metropolitan hospitals they have the opportunity to get a lot of really effective hands-on training, and it’s also great to see them become part of our work family.
“Traditionally they are very high performers, and last year three of our Longlook trainees won university medals, which is a tremendous achievement and something we’re very proud of.”
Griffith University’s Prof Scott Kitchener, the Medical Director of Queensland Rural Medical Education (QRME), said Kingaroy Hospital was the one of the first hospitals to develop the innovative model of the Rural Longlook Program, where students learn and work alongside the Rural Generalist doctors of the hospital for at least a year or more.
“This has been a very popular program with the students and it has also been highly effective academically and as a workforce solution,” he said.
“The Longlook program has returned the highest proportion of students to rural and regional internships.
“The Rural Clinical School is very pleased to continue the Longlook Program with Kingaroy Hospital.”
Griffith University has a strong rural focus with a well-established rural clinical school and a dedicated entry to medicine for rural students.
QRME has partnered with Griffith University to deliver the university’s rural clinical training, funded by the Commonwealth Government’s Rural Health multidisciplinary training program.
QRME is locally based, locally led and locally governed, and ensures a focused rural stream for Griffith University’s School of Medicine.
