University Department of Rural Health (UDRH)

Empowering our People - Rebecca Atkinson

The University Department of Rural Health (UDRH) is one of the designated programs of the Rural Health Multidisciplinary Training Program.

The UDRH works with local health services and communities across northeast Victoria and the Grampians region to expand the health workforce, increase access to services for consumers and improve quality of care.

The work of the UDRH focuses on Student Placements, Aboriginal Health and Research.

Student Placements

The Going Rural Health team supports around 1500 allied health and nursing students each year from a range of different universities and disciplines to undertake a rural clinical placement. The program also supports students to undertake rural psychology and wellbeing placements.

The team actively works with health services and education providers, along with students directly, to assist and improve the learning and rural experiences that students gain during their placement.

Aboriginal Health

The UDRH supports Aboriginal students undertaking a range of courses – from the Specialist Certificate in Empowering Health in Aboriginal Communities (delivered by the UDRH team at Shepparton); through to the Graduate Certificate in Aboriginal Health in Rural Communities, Master of Public Health and PhD. UDRH also supports students studying nursing programs at GOTAFE and La Trobe University in Shepparton (in partnership with ASHE).

Research

The aim of the Department of Rural Health research program is to undertake research with impact for rural communities in our region.