Mildura

Core rotations

  • Aged Care

    In Mildura, students will experience aged care in a wide variety of settings, both within the hospital and community. Students will be rostered onto medical/aged care teams at Mildura Base Public Hospital where the majority of the inpatients are aged over 60. This general medical placement will allow students to consolidate their learning around chronic disease, polypharmacy and multiple diagnoses. In the other component of the rotation, students will be rostered to placements at community-based organisations/aged care services. These placements allow a unique insight and exposure to service providers that enable the aged person to remain at home for as long as possible.

  • Emergency Medicine

    Mildura Base Public Hospital’s Emergency Department has 18 examination bays and contains an eight-bed Short Stay Unit. The department sees around 35,000 patients per annum across the full spectrum of presentations within a wide catchment area. Students will be rostered over a variety of shifts to experience the ED and its fluctuating resources during the days, evenings and weekends. The department is fully equipped and staffed with a variety of clinical specialists and healthcare professionals to manage all presentations. Students will always be rostered with an emergency medicine consultant and with limited numbers of students on any one shift this allows great patient access and direct supervision relevant to level of experience. Students will be given the opportunity to attend ED training sessions with the ED team.

  • Medicine

    The Department of Medicine in Mildura will offer students a broad-based rural experience. Medical teams provide a wide range of acute and chronic inpatient medical services for respiratory, renal, cardiac, neurological and oncology conditions. Students will be fully immersed in the medical team and work alongside the interns to assist them with patient care. Responsibilities may include history taking, patient examinations, case presentations and shared responsibility for direct patient management (under supervision). The Department also holds regular education meetings including ECG and imaging interpretation which students will have the opportunity to attend. Our patients are more than willing to engage with medical students and medical staff are always prepared to find time for teaching.

  • Surgery

    If students have ever wanted to assist in theatre, this is your chance! The surgical teams want students in their theatres, so grab this opportunity to glove up, gown up and get into the exciting world of surgery. Students will assist the registrars and interns with pre-ward rounds and then follow on with the students team to round with consultants. Students will be assigned to regular theatre sessions with students nominated by the PIA supervisor. As members of the surgical team, this is an opportunity to learn some basic concepts about surgery, aseptic technique and suturing that will benefit students regardless of which field students choose to enter post graduation. The surgical teams hold education sessions, including surgical grand rounds, case presentations and quality assurance meetings.

  • Scholarly Intensive Placement (SIP)

    Both Mildura Base Public Hospital, Monash Rural Health Mildura staff and local community health organisations can supervise SIP rotations in Mildura. Projects may be focused on clinical audits and service improvement within the clinical setting. Monash Rural Health Mildura staff provide projects around a variety of rural health issues and our local community. Some tailoring of student preferences can occur pending supervisor availability and capacity.

Specialty rotations

  • Anaesthetics

    Anaesthetics at Mildura Base Public Hospital is an extremely hands-on practical specialty and the majority of students’ time will be spent in theatres. Students will be rostered to be with an anaesthetist and will get lots of experience in intubation, cannulation, anaesthetic techniques and protocols. Students will also spend time in recovery with the nursing staff, get exposure to pre-anaesthetic clinics, ICU, and pain rounds. As noted by one of our past students: “If students feel at all uncomfortable with cannulas, after this rotation students will be able to cannulate a rock with a straw”.

  • Cardiology

    Mildura is fortunate to have Mildura Cardiology offering a full range of consultative and diagnostic services for a variety of cardiac conditions. Students will have the opportunity to sit in with consultant cardiologists for private consultations and shadow the cardiology registrar between the public and private hospital and private rooms allowing the student to develop and consolidate learning around cardiology in the rural context. Students will have the opportunity to practise procedural skills such as ECGs and Cardiac history and examination skills. Students may observe cardiac investigative procedures such as Echocardiograms, Exercise Stress Testing, 24-hour Holter Monitoring, 24-hour Blood Pressure Monitoring, Pacemaker and Defibrillator Testing.

  • General Practice

    A rural GP placement in Mildura offers students an opportunity to consolidate their knowledge and skills in general practice. Working with their supervisor/s, students will develop their ability to assess and manage the general practice patient in a regional/ rural environment. Students will be parallel consulting with their GP supervisor. Students will have the opportunity to practise taking histories, examining patients, developing management plans, and arranging follow up appointments and referrals. Students will gain a deeper understanding of the long term goals of care in patients with chronic diseases and the effects these conditions have on their lives.

  • Indigenous Health

    Indigenous Health placements involve immersion in diverse local Indigenous health organisations that deliver essential services and support related to health, family, early childhood, and overall well-being within Indigenous communities. Generally, students will attend placement at Coomealla Health Aboriginal Corporation (CHAC) or Mallee District Aboriginal Services (MDAS), both of which are vibrant and innovative organisations. Students will be under the supervision of the General Practitioner and will be encouraged to assess and examine patients in the GP clinic. Students may be rostered to the Aboriginal Liaison Service at Mildura Base Public Hospital, familiarising themselves with the services and issues surrounding treatment in the acute setting. There may be additional opportunities for students to visit and be immersed in the local indigenous community activities.

  • Medical Education

    As a medical graduate students will be expected to be skilled in lifelong learning practices and additionally supervise, teach, facilitate, assess and provide feedback to colleagues.This specialty is designed with a focus on clinical skills education, learning what goes on behind the scenes in the clinical skills lab setting; teaching procedural skills, utilising high fidelity manikins, scenario development and implementation.Recognising that it is common for peer teachers to lack confidence the participant will receive training related to this role and placements within the Mildura Base Public Hospital that correlate with participant’s particular clinical skill interest – i.e. airway management, procedural skills.

  • Orthopaedics

    Mildura Base Public Hospital's orthopaedic team provides specialist care for conditions affecting the bones and joints. This includes trauma, such as fractures, as well as joint replacements and other chronic conditions of the bones and joints. Students will have opportunities to attend theatre sessions, bi-weekly fracture clinics and round with the ‘ortho’ team.

  • Oncology, Paediatrics, Emergency Medicine, Intensive Care Medicine, Psychiatry (limited availability)

    Placements in these areas may be available via negotiation with local site staff.