SPINRPHEX Mentoring Program

Once again SPINRPHEX is running their Mentoring Program. This program aims to enhance rural high school students knowledge about university degrees. If you are interesting in getting involved in this program please complete the application form attached and send it with a copy of your Working With Children’s Check to [email protected] by the 15th of July.

About Our Mentoring Program

The SPINRPHEX Mentoring Program involves teleconference sessions, which connect rural/remote secondary school students in years 11 and 12 with current university students and SPINRPHEX members. This program was started in the second university semester of 2014, and given its success, plans to continue in 2015 and beyond.

Studies1,2 have shown that the best indicator of a health professional’s willingness to work in a rural setting is where they grew up. It is much harder to encourage metropolitan students to work rurally than it is for those who were brought up there. Unfortunately though there are smaller proportions of students from rural backgrounds entering University than their metropolitan counterparts3. Whilst there are many reasons for this, we hope that this program can help deal with some of the social issues and fears that students may have about attending University or studying in a health profession.

How the program works

Schools are asked to encourage students currently in years 11 and 12 to sign up for the mentoring program. Students will be in a group of 10 students, with each group being assigned two SPINRPHEX mentors. The mentors will be  SPINRPHEX members with a valid Working with Children Check, with at least one mentor for each group coming from a rural background. Meetings will occur weekly for three weeks for a total of three sessions.

References and further reading
Rabinowitz HK, Diamond JJ, Markham FW, Santana AJ. The relationship between entering medical students’ backgrounds and career plans and their rural practice outcomes three decades later. Acad Med 2012; 87: 493-497.
Rabinowitz HK, Diamond JJ, Markham FW, Wortman JR. Medical school programs to increase the rural physician supply: a systematic review and projected impact of widespread replication. Cad Med 2008; 83: 235-243
Australian Bureau of Statistics, 2008. Education Across Australia. Retrieved from http://www.abs.gov.au/AUSSTATS/[email protected]/Lookup/4102.0Chapter6002008