Do undertaking rural placements and place of origin inform where allied health graduates work in South Australia?

Abstract

Objective: To examine the principal place of practice after graduation of students who participated in the Rural Health Multidisciplinary Training (RHMT) program and allied health students' place of origin.

Design: Cross-sectional study.

Participants: Graduates who completed their degree in podiatry, occupational therapy and physiotherapy in 2019.

Main outcome measures: Principal place of practice at first and third years after graduation.

Results: In 2020, 40 allied health professionals (AHPs) who graduated from the University of South Australia in 2019 were practising in rural areas but only 26 of them remained in the rural practice in 2022. The retention rate for rural practice was 65% within 2 years. However, in 2022, 25 allied health professionals left their metropolitan employment location and transitioned to rural practice. Of the 25 allied health graduates who joined the rural practice in 2022, most of them (80%, 20/25) had either rural exposure through the RMHT program or were from rural origin.

Conclusions: Rural exposure via the RHMT program and allied health students' rural place of origin have an important role for rural principal place of practice at first and third years after graduation.

Keywords: allied health; recruitment and retention; rural health; rural workforce issues; student placements.