Jenny Sheen

Jenny Sheen
Jenny Sheen
Doctor of Medicine MD (second year)
Shepparton Rural Clinical School placement

My experience has been incredibly rewarding thanks to the wonderful staff and the patients at the Rural Clinical School in Shepparton. I’ve been pleasantly surprised at how genuine and friendly people from the rural community are!

The teaching staff have been great here, and the larger emphasis on clinical practice this year has been the most enjoyable part of the course so far. At first it was intimidating going into hospital for the first time, but the Clinical Educator Facilitators make the process much smoother. They’re there to make sure we get the most out of our time in hospital, helping us find good patients to talk to and guiding our critical thinking.

We talk to patients and examine them if they’re happy for us to do so, and I’ve been practising new clinical skills like inserting a cannula. All of these things seemed daunting at first but doing them repeatedly is helping to build my confidence.

The rural school is in touch regularly and there is lots of support with the practical side of things like timetabling. They also send regular emails about what’s happening in Shepparton, which is great.

I’ve really enjoyed living with my fellow students, it’s made moving out of home a fun experience. Not only is it great to have others on hand for group study, we also enjoy movie nights and pod dinners! It also makes being in hospital much easier because we’re all there to support one another. I go to the local gym regularly, and I’m enjoying getting to know the local parts of town.

My tip for other students: Learning in a hospital setting is so different to just learning from lectures – but it’s way more interesting!