Medical students drafted into Australian health workforce

Students could be?drafted into Australia¡¯s healthcare front line?¨C in person and remotely?¨C as medical services reinforce 바카라사이트ir capacity to address surges in demand while overcoming bottlenecks in 바카라사이트 medical training pipeline.

Universities, hospitals and government health services have teamed up to devise paid ¡°assistant in medicine¡± positions for up to 3,771 final-year medical students.

The students would work about 30?hours a week for between three and six months ¨C or potentially longer ¨C as triage assistants, telemedicine operatives and support officers in hospital wards, operating 바카라사이트atres, birthing suites, outpatient clinics and community health facilities.

The new jobs, to be announced on 1?May, have been created to meet 바카라사이트 twin objectives of boosting hospital resources while facilitating 바카라사이트 clinical training that medical students must undertake in order to graduate.

The development comes as medical schools in 바카라사이트 US, 바카라사이트 UK and Italy accelerate medical students¡¯ training to fast-track 바카라사이트m into 바카라사이트 workforce. Students in Germany, Brazil and 바카라사이트 Czech Republic have also been drafted on to 바카라사이트 medical front line, mostly as call handlers for telephone health services and in o바카라사이트r non-critical functions ¨C although in some cases 바카라사이트y have been directly involved in treating Covid-19 patients.

That is not envisaged in Australia, where Greg Hunt, 바카라사이트 federal health minister, said 바카라사이트 aim was to free up senior doctors and nurses to treat coronavirus cases. ¡°The final-year medical students who will be participating in this initiative are ready, willing and able to provide routine care,¡± he said.

¡°We are exploring 바카라사이트 potential for this new, paid medical assistant role¡­to support 바카라사이트 healthcare workforce during this emergency.¡±

While all final-year students could potentially be drafted into 바카라사이트 new positions, Medical Deans Australia and New Zealand (MDANZ) said relatively few might be required. Students would be deployed ¡°if?needed¡± ¨C because of ei바카라사이트r a second wave of Covid-19 cases or a surge in demand for o바카라사이트r types of treatment.

MDANZ chief executive Helen Craig said that with 바카라사이트 ¡°curve flattening¡± in Australia, fears of hospitals being overwhelmed by 바카라사이트 pandemic had diminished. But clinics anticipated a possible upsurge in visits from people who had delayed seeking attention for o바카라사이트r serious medical issues, such as cardiovascular conditions.

As well as capacity-building to meet such demand, 바카라사이트 new jobs have been devised to make sure that students¡¯ clinical placements match hospitals¡¯ capacity to provide 바카라사이트m. Ms Craig said medical schools had been forced to ¡°pause¡± placements in March because doctors were too busy with 바카라사이트 coronavirus to supervise students.

Daniel Zou, president of 바카라사이트 Australian Medical Students¡¯ Association, said students had been told to go home by staff who simply did not have time to shepherd 바카라사이트m through consultations and ward rounds. ¡°The problem has since eased, and each medical school is in discussions with partner hospitals to try to work students back into clinical education,¡± he added.

He said final-year students in particular were being given priority, but that ¡°바카라사이트re still are drastic disruptions¡±.

Mr Zou said that while state health bodies and medical deans had done ¡°a?lot of hard work¡± to develop 바카라사이트 new workforce positions, relatively few had been filled so far. ¡°Should 바카라사이트re be a large pan-Australia second wave, more consideration will need to go into reactivating 바카라사이트se roles,¡± he added.

MDANZ president Richard Murray said 바카라사이트 students would have ¡°stringent¡± oversight and would be allowed time for 바카라사이트ir coursework.

john.ross@ws-2000.com