Bursary
AHSR Bursary
º About the bursary
º 2005 Competition
º Winner's report
º Report on Submissions
Changing the Trends - Attracting Dentists to the Country.
The problem of attracting health care professionals to work outside the major capital cities is well recognised. To try to address this, Australian Health Sector Recruiting launched the AHSR Rural and Regional Elective Bursary Competition in 2001. The competition was introduced to give final year dental students an incentive to explore career options in the country and to gain more insight into the various issues facing rural and regional practitioners. To be eligible to apply for the bursary the students need to have arranged a placement in rural or regional Australia at least three hours drive from the dental hospital at which they are studying. The students are able to enjoy their time, free of the stress associated with the need to make a major commitment that would otherwise colour their experience.
The competition is open to the final year dental students of all Australian universities. From these, two winners are chosen. A prize of $700.00 is awarded to each winner to help meet the financial burden of a rural or regional placement. AHSR has been instrumental in assisting dental students who would like to spend time in rural or regional Australia in finding mentors. Due to overwhelming support from the dental community in 2001, AHSR undertook to run the competition for at least five more years.
The idea for the bursaries was inspired by the paradigm shift experienced by one of the founders of AHSR when she undertook her final year elective in Darwin. All three students who went on this elective to Darwin were born and bred in major cities. As a direct result of their elective in Darwin all have spent time as dentists outside the major cities. Two of them continued to do so more than five years down the track. Seven years later, one of the two has returned to a dental school to undergo further study but fully intends to work in a regional area on completion of her masters. The other remains in regional Australia.
Further support for the premise that a rural elective is an effective means for changing the outlook of the students is found in the resounding success of the Rural Placement Program. Set up in New South Wales in 2000, 40% of the dental students who successfully applied to take part in the program in its first year went on to work in rural locations. Prior to entering the program none of these students had considered work outside the major cities. Since then the figures have remained around the 40% mark with many of the students not having considered leaving a major city before the program, and those who had, commenting that the program had validated and confirmed their decision.
Anyone interested in the competition or with further suggestions as to how to address the shortage of dentists coming to country areas is encouraged to contact Dr Sharon Marinucci at AHSR on info@ahsr.com.au or
00 61 2 6651 3116
Rural and Regional Elective Bursaries 2005
The problem of attracting dentists to come to work outside the major capital cities is well recognised. At Australian Health Sector Recruiting (AHSR) we deal with this problem every day and recognise its extent. As a result, in 2001 we introduced the AHSR Rural and Regional Elective Bursary Competition to give students an incentive to explore dentistry outside the major metropolitan areas. The feedback from students who took a rural placement in 2001 was extremely positive and students continued to contact AHSR to request an introduction to a rural practice even after the competition had closed. As a result we undertook to continue the competition for a further five years. This year sees the fifth time the competition has been run.
The Winners of the 2005 AHSR Rural and Regional Elective Bursary Competition are Patrick Tam of Sydney University and Amy Pun The University of Adelaide.
Each winner has received a prize of $700.00 and a free 12-month subscription to Australasian Dental Practice.
2005 AHSR Bursary Competition Winners
Patrick Tam
Elective Placement:
Royal Flying Doctor Service, Broken Hill, NSW; & Community Dental Centre (Northern Territory Department of Health & Community Services), Alice Springs, NT.
ELECTIVE OBJECTIVES
Obtain an insight into:
. The practice of dentistry in a remote setting compared to an urban environment.
. The role of the Royal Flying Doctor Service & a public community dental service, & the spectrum of patients treated, in remote locations of Australia.
. The prevalence of oral disease and/or predisposing factors of oral disease in remote environments.
. Diagnosis and management of dental problems presenting in different community groups in remote locations.
. The influence and/or limitations of a remote setting on treatment planning and management decisions, and the necessary modifications or adaptations required to successfully deliver treatment in such a setting with relatively limited resources.
. The health concerns, priorities and accessibility to oral & other health services of different community groups in remote settings served by the Royal Flying Doctor Service & a public community dental service, i.e. an understanding of remote health issues.
. Oral health needs of Aboriginal people in Central Australia.
. Culturally appropriate dental treatment of Aboriginal patients.
. Oral health of a remote Aboriginal community.
. An improved understanding of the health system viewed from a different perspective.
. The professional role and community contribution and responsibility of the dentist in a remote setting.
Amy Pun
Elective Placement:
Amy conducted her selective in Port Augusta (SA) in the area of oral health promotion for school aged children.
ELECTIVE OBJECTIVES
1. Through background research regarding the oral health and general health issues facing the local children, I will develop a number of 'child-friendly' resources to make the dental education experience fun. I have created a mascot - 'Bucky Bilby' (a cute cartoon bilby with buck teeth) which will feature centrally throughout my resources. I have brainstormed:
. Posters using photographs of the community clinic with smiling children and their parents outside with Bucky
. Games with dental trivia eg Bingo (matching pictures of dental instruments to their descriptive uses), board game
. Colour-in competition with dental prizes eg toothbrushes, Bucky t-shirt
. Information brochures for the children orientating them to dental visits, hygiene tips etc. Designed interactive so they don't throw it away without looking at it eg dot-to-dot activities
. Similar brochures for the adults discussing importance of dental health, what does a dental visit entail, common procedures eg fissure sealants
2. Spend time talking to the children individually and as a class introducing the resources.
AHSR Rural and Regional Bursary Competition
Report on Submissions 2005
gThe lifestyle benefits of living and working as a dentist in the country.h
Compiled by Dr Phillip Marinucci.
Each year since 2001 Australian Health Sector Recruiting (AHSR) has run the AHSR Rural and Regional Elective Bursary Competition. This is an opportunity for final year dental students at Australian Universities to submit a short written piece on a subject nominated in the around March in the hope of being awarded one of two $700 prizes. The catch is that they have to have arranged a rural elective term (or have just completed one) with the money ostensibly to assist them with the costs of such an elective term.
It has long been recognised that professionals (be they dentists, doctors or whatever) are more likely to practice in rural areas if part of their studies occur in rural areas. AHSR recognises this and for that reason set up the competition as a way of encouraging students to at least consider a rural elective term. AHSR has its offices in a country centre and the principals are well aware of the benefits of rural living and working.
Entrants in the bursary competition are required to write a short (less than 500 words) piece on a topic relevant to rural practice. These topics almost exclusively focus on the positive aspects of rural practice so that as the students strive to write a decent submission they actively think of these positive aspects. In this way it is hoped that what they write also has an impact on what they actually think. This year's topic was 'The lifestyle benefits of living and working as a dentist in the country'. As usual the entries were all of a high standard and there was a fair degree of consistency in the points raised.
Following is a brief overview of the points that were raised in the submissions. The benefits fall broadly into two categories, professional and personal benefits, although there is probably a third category of personal professional benefits (ie benefits of a personal nature in professional life).
It may be surprising for many metropolitan based dentists but there are some real professional benefits to be gained from working in country areas. Most patients are likely to stay in the area for a long time and as such comprehensive, continuous treatments over years can be contemplated for the patient base. A close relationship with patients, and the patients' GPs, is often more achievable because of the closer-knit communities and this facilitates this more comprehensive care.
Additionally, there is a much broader range of conditions seen by general dentists and a consequently larger range of procedures performed. This is beneficial in terms of greater intellectual stimulation and a more varied (and therefore less mundane) practice. It challenges a dentist and rising to meet the challenge can lead to a much greater sense of accomplishment and independence as well as making the dentist more professionally proficient and knowledgeable. If wishing to specialise down the track the independence, resilience and need to rely on problem solving skills is viewed in a positive light. The personal professional benefits mentioned are partly those just mentioned (ie the sense of accomplishment and independence) but extend much further. Rural areas often have a 'dental deficit' that may have been present for some considerable time and practicing dentistry in these circumstances is really helping people in need. This in itself may lead to greater levels of respect, and more quickly, than in a larger metropolitan centre. In the city a new dentist is just another unfamiliar face. In the country a new dentist is news and welcome news at that.
So, working in the country offers warm fuzzy feelings for dentists feeling like they are actually doing something that matters and helping a community. The personal benefits alluded to above stem partly from this notion of community. Country towns are often close-knit communities, which the dentist becomes a part of, providing support in times of need. The whole attitude toward community is different in rural areas. The pace of life is more relaxed, there is usually less travel and definitely less traffic than in cities and the price of houses and rents are considerably lower than in cities. Added to this is country helpfulness (rather than the urban 'look-the-other-way' approach) - something that has to be experienced to understand its true benefits.
Country areas allow access to pursuits requiring large open spaces more easily (eg horse-riding, bushwalking, surfing, etc). The out of hours opportunities may not always extend to world-class opera or ballet, nor a glitz and glamour social life but for many this is a welcome relief rather than a negative. All of this adds up to a less stressful lifestyle and a great place to bring up young children.
It was clear from the submissions (and also from what we have experienced ourselves) that there are significant benefits to living and working in the country. Perhaps the last word however, should go to Emma Russell (one of the two winners for 2004 who had completed her elective just prior to the bursary competition): ' In doing this elective I discovered it is not only possible to have successful career in the country, but that I actually have a wider range of opportunities to achieve professional goals sooner than I could anticipate if I stayed in the city. I discovered that by working in the country I can not only achieve my professional and financial goals, but that I can do this with the added benefit of a relaxed, friendly and varied lifestyle. Added to this, in my opinion, is the greatest benefit of working in the country: being involved in a supportive and close-knit community.'
