As efforts to tackle Australia’s coronavirus outbreak look set to continue for the months ahead, students at some universities are being fast-tracked into early service as clinical assistants in a bid to bolster health systems.
Students from the University of Melbourne started their first day of work at Footscray Hospital on Monday.
Shipra Kaul, also a final-year student at the University of Melbourne, says being able to contribute during the pandemic is the opportunity of a lifetime. “Each health service will determine the number of positions. Students will then be offered paid employment contracts which allow them to be supervised in roles that are suitable for their skills and level of experience.”Western Sydney University is also preparing its final-year students to work at hospitals.
The students will work under supervision in non-COVID-19 wards to help ease some of the pressure if a surge in demand hits. Although many international students are eager to contribute, their visas restrict how much they can work to 40 hours a fortnight. “International medical students make up about 16 per cent of medical students in Australia,” he said. “They went through the same training [and] we understand there has been a lifting of restrictions for nursing students.
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