The complexity of delivering modern health care accompanied by staff shortages across many health industries is placing increasing emphasis on the need for graduates to be work-ready. In response to this, the way that work-integrated learning is delivered has also shifted in many disciplines to be more focused on producing graduates who have broad and transferable skills in addition to discipline-specific skills and knowledge. New work-integrated learning models that vary from the traditional structure, supervision models and student roles are routinely being used in rural Australia. This presentation will explore different work-integrated learning approaches used by a team of health academics and the benefits of these approaches for students, universities, and host organisations. The presentation will particularly focus on the contribution of these models to creating work-ready graduates and an approach to quality assurance when designing, delivering, and evaluating these experiences.

About the Presenters

Elyce Green is a registered nurse with a background in clinical education and critical care nursing in rural areas. She currently works as the Rural Health Education Lead at Three Rivers DRH and is involved in the design and quality assurance of multidisciplinary work-integrated learning programs delivered across rural New South Wales.

Brent Smith is a registered podiatrist and has extensive experience in clinical education as a supervisor and university academic. As a Lecturer in Rural Health, Brent is responsible for developing, delivering, and evaluating several different models of placement within his geographical footprint. He works with health professionals across more than 14 different disciplines and has experience in creating work-integrated learning opportunities tailored to the needs of local stakeholders.