Clinical placements help students warm to allied health
Published on 14 September, 2012
CQUniversity Nursing student Kellie Rundell recently completed her final clinical placement in Mt Isa, after requesting a 'rural and remote' location.
Kellie experienced a range of community nursing roles, including the Homeless Health Outreach Team (HHOT), and says she gained a lot by working within a multidisciplinary group of nurses, health workers and social workers.
Kellie Rundell is back on campus after her very varied clinical placement in Nursing
This emphasis on clinical experience is set to continue as CQUniversity rolls out even more Allied Health options in 2013.
These fresh programs will be in addition to Nursing and Midwifery, Paramedic Science, Medical Science, Medical Imaging and Sonography, Oral Health, Chiropractic Science, Accident Forensics, Health Promotion, Occupational Health and Safety, Environmental Health, Psychology and Social Work.
The new batch includes Occupational Therapy, Speech Pathology, Physiotherapy and Podiatry at undergraduate level, along with new postgraduate programs in Rail Safety Management and Fatigue Risk Management.
Meantime, CQUniversity Noosa Campus has become a new hub for the Bachelor of Nursing by distance education, drawing on high-tech nursing and midwifery labs to support residential schools and adding to Nursing programs already offered via Bundaberg, Mackay and Rockhampton.
Rockhampton Campus recently accepted the first client for its new Allied Health Clinic, which is designed to cater for up to 160 patients each day. Queensland Health professionals located on campus are also providing clinical placements for students (about 200 placements annually at an average length of 6.2 weeks) to train the next generation of local health workers.
CQUniversity recently launched a unique medical sonography program based at a $1.5 million laboratory on the 11th floor of its CBD campus at 400 Kent Street, Sydney. As this is Australia's only sonography program available for undergraduate entry (with postgraduate exit), there's been an enthusiastic response from students keen to help relieve a critical health workforce shortage.
The University is now also offering this Bachelor of Medical Sonography and Graduate Diploma of Medical Sonography dual program at its Brisbane and Melbourne campuses in 2013.
