September 1, 2022
Students from Kingaroy were among hundreds of young people from across the Darling Downs Health region who took part in a recent Aspire2Health program.
The workshops aimed to give senior school students a real-world taste of a career in healthcare and the opportunity to meet health professionals.
“The health sector is the largest employer in the region so the Aspire2Health program is a wonderful way to ensure we link some of our brightest students to health,” Toowoomba and Surat Basin Enterprise (TSBE) spokesperson Jaden Frame said.
“Students seemed to really enjoy the activities on offer, especially those hands-on skills which they might not have expected to encounter before university. They also appreciated learning about the many different opportunities involved in healthcare.”
One of the goals of the Aspire2Health program is to encourage students to return to live and work where they grew up once they become qualified.
“We know that students from a rural area who undertake a health degree are more likely to return to practice in a rural area so bringing these workshops to regional and rural Southern Queensland creates a pathway for health career choices to grow the rural health workforce,” Southern Queensland Rural Health Director Associate Professor Geoff Argus said.
UQ Rural Clinical School Deputy Director Dr Doogie Whitcombe said the Aspire2Health program was an excellent way for Year 9 and 10 students to meet health professionals from a variety of backgrounds.
“Most students are aware the roles of a doctor or a nurse, and while these careers are discussed, there are a multitude of other career pathways the students may not be aware of,” Dr Whitcombe said.
“The main message of the day is that quality healthcare is a huge team effort which requires the input of multiple highly trained individuals.”
