Rural immersion and student mental health

Recruiting health professionals to rural and remote regions of Australia is a constant challenge. One strategy for encouraging students to consider living and working in rural and remote regions of Australia are rural immersion programs. These programs are designed to immerse students in rural and remote communities and expose them to the unique joys, challenges and opportunities of rural life and rural healthcare settings. A positive rural experience and one which supports students' mental health and wellbeing is vitally important as it increases their openness to practise rurally. The Curtin School of Medicine Rural Health Campus is undertaking a literature review of the published and grey literature on short rural immersion programs for pre-clinical students to inform the development of future rural immersion programs in the Wheatbelt and Goldfields regions of Western Australia. Preliminary findings indicate that students who feel well supported during rural immersion programs and connect with the people in rural communities are more likely to pursue a rural lifestyle and rural health practice.