It was a busy day at UCRH yesterday as high school students from across the region descended on our Lismore campus to learn more about a career in health.
Around 60 Year 11 students (and their careers advisors) from Summerland Christian College, St Johns Woodlawn, Kadina High School, Alstonville High School, Trinity Catholic College, Emmanual Anglican College, Ballina Coast High School, St Josephs College, Byron Bay High School, Grafton High School, Kingscliff High School and Murwillumbah High School were involved in the day.
The UCRH High School Day is an annual event organised in partnership with Connect Northern Rivers. Due to COVID and floods, this is the first time the event has been held since 2019. Aimed at Year 11 students, those who attend have a chance to connect with and hear firsthand from students who are already studying a health-related degree and are on placement here in the Northern Rivers. The day is interactive, with a chance to learn about entrance exams for health degrees, talk to clinicians, and to get hands-on with a range of health-related skills and scenarios. A unique part of the days is a session aimed at careers advisors, to support them in their work to help students navigate career pathways into health fields.
Highlights of day included a panel discussion from current university students studying health degrees (including medicine, nursing, physiotherapy, dentistry, occupational therapy, nutrition and dietetics and exercise physiology).
The afternoon session was popular, with hands-on skills stations giving students a chance to learn everything from suturing to basic life support to dentistry skills.
“Supporting and nurturing the health workforce of the future is a big part of what we do,” Professor Vicki Flood, Director of UCRH said.
“We know that young people from rural areas are more likely to return to regional areas after their university studies, so if we want more health care professionals in our communities, days like our student forum are critical,” she added.
“If we can plant a seed in the minds of these bright young students, hopefully we’ll see them inspired to study a health profession and then one day return to be our next generation of doctors, dentists, physios, nurses and more.”
