ABSTRACT Undertaking an authentic interprofessional simulation experience may be a useful and consistent strategy for healthcare professional students to build competencies required for a rural healthcare context. An observational comparative study design was adopted to evaluate a clinical simulation experience created to develop the interprofessional competencies of a sample of healthcare professional students at a regional university situated on multiple campuses in New South Wales (NSW), Australia. Over 200 students across three campuses of the university were involved in a simulation experience that included four interprofessional activities. Of these students, 189 (89%) agreed to participate in the study. The healthcare [...]

Background: Clinical placements can be limited in rural areas so innovative models of this are increasingly needed. Aims: This paper explores the learning afforded to undergraduate paramedicine students through a short-term health promotion activity. Methods: Undergraduate paramedicine students who attended a health promotion event as part of their work-integrated learning requirements were invited to take part in a group mind-mapping activity. Two central questions were posed to the students: ‘What did you learn during your placement at the agricultural field days?’ and ‘What facilitated your learning at the agricultural field days?’ Results: 13 of the 14 students attending the placement [...]

Older people who are wanting to support their own ability to age well may benefit from attending community-based group programs. However, many of these programs are designed and implemented by health professionals without direct input from older people, which may limit the opportunity to ensure such programs are authentically meeting the needs of this population group. A qualitative approach, using an interpretative phenomenological analysis (IPA), was undertaken with seven (six female and one male) participants, aged between 62 and 80 years to explore the experiences of participating in a pilot Ageing Well Program. Interviews were transcribed and analysed according to IPA [...]