The Ipswich community is helping prepare the Queensland health system for the challenges of the future.
Students of the new
Bachelor of Health Sciences program are being educated to fill an important need in the dynamic health industry, with the local health community playing a key role, Program Co-ordinator, Dr Sonj Hall said.
“Three in every four new jobs created in the past six months in Australia were in the health and community care. Increasing pressure on our health system means that not only professionals in clinical roles, like doctors, nurses and physiotherapists are in demand. We also need more health practitioners in non-clinical roles. These people do not treat patients, but work on projects that promote better health or help improve services,” she said.
The
Bachelor of Health Sciences degree can open doors to careers in both the public and private health sectors, in areas such as health promotion, media liaison, Indigenous health, health service management, and policy development and planning.
“This degree was designed in consultation with the health industry to address the “business” of health. It offers a wide range of career opportunities that young people might not be aware of,” Dr Hall said.
For this reason, a range of local health practitioners are being invited to meet with students studying this new program which is in its first year. Dr Hall said the “Meet the Practitioner” sessions were designed to inform students about the wide range of careers that were available to graduates. She said the informal sessions were providing students with a valuable understanding of the health system, while forging links with local health services.
Representatives from a range of organisations have been involved so far, including Family Planning Queensland, the National Heart Foundation and the Division of General Practice and the Queensland Cancer Fund.
Community involvement will culminate for students in their third year, when they are involved in a unique industry placement program and experience hands-on health project work with a local organisation.