Year 5D aged care rotation

Aged care

Rotations 1,2,3,4,5,6
Up to 4 students per rotation
Mildura Base Hospital
Clinical Supervisors:
Dr Vasant Mani, General Medicine & Gastroenterology
Dr Barnabas Mavo, General Medicine & Geriatrics
Dr Terry Cook, General Medicine
Dr Krishna Rachakonda, General Medicine & Oncology
Dr Muhammad Javaid, General Medicine & Nephrology

Aged care in Mildura differs slightly to other sites where you will be exposed to aged care in a wide variety of settings both within the hospital and the community setting. You will gain a unique insight/exposure to service providers that enable the aged person to remain at home for as long as possible.

You will spend time attached to medical teams on the wards of Mildura Base where the majority of the inpatients are aged over 60. This general medical placement will allow you to consolidate your learnings about chronic disease, poly-pharmacy and multiple diagnoses, and you will generally participate in ACAS assessments and family meetings. The other part of your rotation will be spent on placement at community-based aged care services.

Students will also be rostered and attached to:

  • Aged Care Facility – Jacaranda Village, Red Cliffs or Chaffey Aged Care, Merbein – 3 days
  • Aged Care Assessment Service (ACAS) – 1 day
  • VCAT Guardianship hearings – 1 day
  • Meals-on-wheels delivery service – 2-3 hours
  • Mildura Base Hospital Community Services: Transitional Care Program – 1 day; Residential In-Reach – 1 day
  • Sunraysia Community Health Services programs: - District Nursing – 1 day; Continence Service – ½ day; Palliative Care Service – 1 day

What our students say about their aged care rotation

I completed my aged care rotation in Mildura under the supervision of Dr Mavo. The rotation was a great mix of in-hospital and out-of-hospital clinical settings, with approximately four weeks spent on the general medicine and rehab ward at Mildura Base Hospital (where a large majority of the patients are above 60 years old) and two weeks in the community at an aged care facility, meals-on-wheels and clinics. The medicine was very interesting, with added complexity due to the far distances that some patients have to travel to reach the hospital. Since there are no sub-specialists at the hospital, the general medicine ward sees all patients whether they be neuro, cardio, haem, rheum etc. This makes the clinical experiences which you will have very varied and interesting.

Dr Mavo was a great supervisor, as he is a fantastic doctor who was always willing to teach. He would commonly ask for my input in regards to patient care which really made me feel like part of the team. The staff at the clinical school were fantastic, especially Jenny and Kris, who were on hand to answer any questions and to re-organise your roster if needed.

Another great benefit of being in Mildura is the social atmosphere that being far from Melbourne brings. All of the students in Mildura were very friendly and keen to socialise, and we did many activities throughout the rotation including Trentham Winery, Perry Sandhills and visiting the many great cafes in town.

Sam Burrell 2019

 

One of our 2015 students describes her experience in the aged care rotation.