Leeton Shire Council again participated as a host Council in the 2021 Bush Bursary/Country Women's Association (NSW) Scholarship Program.
The NSW Rural Doctors Network offers Bush Bursary and CWA Scholarships which provide selected medical students in NSW and ACT with funding to assist with costs associated with their studies. In return, students spend two weeks on a rural placement in country NSW during their university holidays.
Council has provided $3,000 in funding each financial year for the placement of one or two Bush Bursary/CWA scholarship medical students in the Shire for more than nine years.
"The positive feedback consistently received by students and the NSW Rural Doctors Network tells us the program provides an extremely valuable experience of medicine and lifestyle in a rural setting for students in their pre-clinical years," said Mayor Cr Paul Maytom.
"Council is delighted to be a program host and contribute to such a rewarding initiative that fosters student development in regional areas," he said.
Phoebe Kinsey, a first year Nursing Student at the University of Technology, Sydney, undertook a two-week placement in Leeton earlier this year.
Phoebe spent her first week in the Emergency Department of the Leeton District Hospital, which gave her the opportunity to get to know the staff and get first-hand experience of the great variety of medical experiences presenting in a country hospital.
Her second week was spent at Leeton Medical Centre, Narrandera District Hospital, Marathon Health, and Murrumbidgee Medical and Primary Care.
Phoebe said she gained valuable experience in emergency care, community nursing, general practice nursing, childhood immunisation, and post-surgery physiotherapy during her two-week stay.
Millie Caspers, Program Lead from the Rural Doctors Network, has also praised the program in an email statement to Council.
"We thank you for facilitating such an engaging, educational and memorable experience for Phoebe," she said.
"Based on Phoebe's feedback this placement was incredible - from authentic and engaging clinical exposure to the social and community activities including being so warmly welcomed into the community - this placement was obviously a huge success."
