Monash-led study investigates solution to rural medical workforce shortage
A new collaborative study, led by Monash University, will research the selection and allocation of students in the Bonded Medical Program (BMP), which is designed to address workforce shortages across rural Australia.
The research, funded by the University Clinical Aptitude Test (UCAT) ANZ Consortium, will commence this year with Monash University, the University of Tasmania and the University of Adelaide taking part.
The BMP is an initiative of the Australian Government’s Department of Health and Aged Care and provides students with a Commonwealth-supported place in medical school in exchange for a return of service commitment to work in an eligible area of need, such as a rural community, for three years after graduation. While the program is designed as a long-term strategy to bring more doctors to areas experiencing workforce shortages, there are currently several challenges with its implementation - such as participants not fulfilling their return of service obligations and anecdotally, perceptions among medical students of BMP as a less attractive option.
“Medical students tend to view return of service initiatives such as the BMP negatively. There are very few papers within the Australian medical education literature examining the processes of selection into the program to maximise the best outcomes. This study will combine the data and experiences from three Australian universities in relation to BMP and is expected to shed more light on these processes,” explained Professor Shane Bullock, Head of Monash University’s School of Rural Health and one of the study’s principal investigators.
The partnership aims to investigate current perceptions and literacy around the BMP, and any correlation between BMP students and their UCAT and ATAR admission test scores.
The study also plans to explore the selection processes and demographics of those students in the BMP from across south-eastern Australia. The evidence gathered from this research will assist universities in guiding future selection of students for the BMP and how to increase the effectiveness of the BMP, to ensure that the medical needs of every community in Australia are being met.
“The purpose of the BMP is to enhance the medical workforce in rural Australia and other areas of need, and we believe that this research will be a step towards finding the most beneficial ways to do that,” said Professor Bullock.
The study will begin this month and is expected to finish by the end of December this year. Findings are expected to be published in 2025.