All health students should have paid prac, sector says

Placement poverty experienced by students studying clinical allied health sciences is being ignored, Australia's council of allied health deans has said in its response to teaching, nursing, social work and midwifery students gaining paid work placements.

Announced in May, eligible students are to receive $319 a week to cover the costs associated with completing mandatory and historically unpaid work placements as a requirement to completing their degrees.

It is expected to help students with lower financial means complete their studies, as many have to drop out because they are unable to stop working to prioritise the placement – known as 'placement poverty'– and it will support about 68,000 university and 5000 VET students a year.

Allied health students are not eligible. Those studying physiotherapy, speech pathology, occupational therapy, podiatry, and psychology of lower socio-economic status backgrounds are being ignored, the Australian Council of Deans of Health Sciences (ACDHS) says.

“By excluding allied health students beyond social work from the Commonwealth Prac Payment program, the government may inadvertently entrench socioeconomic disadvantage," chair of the ACDHS board Terry Haines said.

"This program will most strongly attract students from lower socioeconomic backgrounds into the courses receiving prac payments and potentially funnel them into careers with lower future earning potential."

Bodies representing other courses have made similar statements, and asked how the government has decided which jobs deserve the theoretical boost in employment the paid placement program would deliver.

Related stories: Not enough allied care workers to meet aged care standards | Physios and dietitians essential to easing ‘arthritis crisis’

"Given our shortage of engineers, the government must extend this support to engineering students too," Engineers Australia chief Romilly Madew said.

"If we truly want a smarter future, we need to make it easier for aspiring engineers to support themselves and their families as they prepare to drive Australia’s progress."

Charles Darwin University, which has five out of six campuses located in the Northern Territory, said the prac payment is "incredibly needed."

“Many students, particularly those from low socio-economic areas need to pause or give up paid work or even relocate to complete the required placement hours," then acting vice-chancellor Reuben Bolt said.

"Some must choose between filling their car with petrol in order to travel to their placements or having enough food for the week.

“Whilst this Prac Payment is most definitely a great start, we do want to see more study areas included to ensure all students have an equal opportunity to enter their chosen area of the workforce."

With an aging population, workforce shortages and many in the aged care sector pushing for better quality integrated care, investing in our allied health students has become more important than ever.

Federal Education Minister Jason Clare said his mission is to make the education system better and fairer and has implied the payments could be expanded in the future.

“The Albanese Government [has introduced] a Commonwealth Prac Payment to give eligible people who have signed up to do some of the most important jobs in this country a bit of extra help to get the qualifications they need,” he said.

“The Universities Accord recommended we focus the Commonwealth Prac Payment first on teaching, nursing, midwifery, early education teachers and social work, and that’s what we’re doing.”

Read more: Funding for 100 additional aged care facilities for rural and remote communities | Research shows diabetes drug could reduce dementia risk. Here’s how the two diseases may be linked

Do you have an idea for a story?
Email [email protected]