IHE: Australia

Students will be based at the University of Melbourne School of Rural Health in Shepparton, Australia, a town of about 30,000. Shepparton is located in the fruit-growing and wine-producing area of Victoria. The beauty of nearby rivers and bike trails is offset by a local theater and art gallery. Melbourne and the coast are 2 hours by car or train, and the Murray, Australia's largest river, and the nearby "Australian Alps" offer recreational opportunities.

The Australian healthcare system is a national system that cares for all of the 20 million people who live in Australia. However, with over half the population living in metropolitan centers, access issues for rural Australians are significant. Furthermore, while the average life expectancy for Caucasian Australians is the same as for most other developed countries, the life expectancy for indigenous Australians is 20-25 years less. This elective offers students the opportunity to explore the interface between Western and indigenous cultures.

The primary contact for IHE students will be Dr. Dawn DeWitt, formerly the Director of WWAMI Regional Community Based Medical Education for Internal Medicine at UW, and now the Dean of the Rural Clinical School and Head of the School of Rural Health.

To learn more about health issues in Australia you may want to review some of these papers.

Clerkships available

* Family Medicine
* Medicine

Foreign Language

There is no foreign language requirement for this site.

Required Activities

1. 2 week preceptorship in Shepparton. Students will attend the indigenous clinics at Rumbalarra Health Center and at Goulburn Valley Health, the regional hospital. Students will also have the opportunity to work with local agencies and to visit indigenous community agencies.
2. 4-6 weeks spent at a more remote "General Practice" clinic in the region.
3. 10 minute presentation for members of the UWSOM administration and Puget Sound Partners for Global Health upon your return to the United States.
4. 5-10 digital photos of yourself with patients and staff on site. Be sure to ask permission from patients and staff before taking any photos.
5. Complete and turn in your activities diary, Evaluation form, receipts and Expense Report form and receipts to Daren Wade, Program Manager, Health Sciences Global Training Resource Center, C-314 Health Sciences Building, Box 356355, University of Washington, Seattle, WA 98195.

Optional

1. As an alternative to the above, students may participate in the "Rural Health Module," an innovative 4-week course run every 6 weeks in the region by the University of Melbourne School of Rural Health. This interdisciplinary course includes clinical placements and is experiential in nature. Students may arrange to attend the course for credit, but will need to pay fees to attend. These fees will not be covered by the IHE stipend.

Travel

* An Electronic Travel Authority (ETA) or non-electronic label visa is required for travel to Australia. Visa requirements. You should request a short stay visitor visa. To apply you should submit Form 48R, your travel itinerary, a recent bank statement, a letter on official letterhead indicating your plans for return to the United States (e.g. from your residency program), a letter outlining your plans while in Australia, and a fee of $58 (money order or cashier's check). Allow at least 3 weeks for processing. (For more information, see the United States State Department and the Embassy of Australia.)

Housing

Students will be lodged in private apartments.

Safety

You will not be provided with protective TB masks at the hospital. It is important that you bring your own NIOSH-certified particulate filter respirator. A list of NIOSH-approved N95 disposable particulate respirators (including supplier/manufacturer and contact numbers) may be found here.

Traffic accidents are the major cause of injury or death for students in overseas programs. Read more about how to protect yourself at the Association for Safe International Road Travel (ASIRT) website. The ASIRT has compiled Road Travel Reports for 150+ countries. You can order copies of these reports at no charge. The U. S. State Department also provides safety suggestions. Finally, you may find this recent article in the New York Times helpful.

Budget

You are required to purchase all items outlined in the budget. You must bring with you needlestick prophylaxis and other listed supplies. This is NOT optional.

This budget is approximate. We have done our best to estimate the costs students might incur. If your costs exceed the stipend you are given, these costs will be your responsibility to cover. If you underspend the budget allocated for a particular item, you may apply the excess funds to any other item in the budget except food. The amount allocated for food is not intended to cover all your food expenses.

Miscellaneous information

* University of Melbourne Rural Clinical School in Shepparton and the Rumbalarra Health Center