The Healthcare Travelling Roadshow is a grassroots initiative to address workforce shortages in rural health care. The program was conceived at a 2009 event in Prince George, the “Rural Healthcare Workforce Symposium: A Collective Commitment to Action.” The concept was simple: a trip that would take Northern BC post-secondary health care students out to a rural community in the region so they could connect with rural youth.
As it says on the UNBC website, the program involves a multidisciplinary group of health care students from post-secondary institutions around BC travelling to rural communities to showcase career opportunities to high school students, meet the medical professionals living and working there, and visit local health care facilities. This year, the roadshow was held on May 3 and 4 in Fort Nelson (Northern Rockies Regional Municipality).
The Healthcare Travelling Roadshow has three goals:
1. Showcase health care careers as options for rural students
Current post-secondary health care students present to local students, formally and informally, giving them all the details about rural-focused training programs. Since these health care students are generally younger than local parents and health care professionals, they can speak to local youth in a way that’s more engaging. Informal presentations provide opportunities for local students to examine health care equipment and allow for more personal conversations with presenters.
2. Showcase the rural community as a career option for health care students
The rural community -- in this case, Fort Nelson – has an opportunity to introduce the visiting students to the medical community, the hospital or health care facility, the broader community, and local recreational opportunities.
3. Provide an interdisciplinary experience for the health care students
Health care training programs tend to be taught in isolation from the other health care professions, though the careers themselves all rely heavily on interdisciplinary interactions. Thus, there’s clearly a need to improve interdisciplinary opportunities for students during their training.
This year, the roadshow included presentations from 10 students currently enrolled in post-secondary programs about the paths leading them toward careers in nursing, respiratory therapy, laboratory, kinesiology, dental hygiene, midwifery. As well, four students presented on their paths to careers as physicians.
The student presenters set up display tables in the gym at Fort Nelson Secondary School and met with students from grades 8-12. The welcoming and engaging format allowed for conversation, questions, and learning about health care, as well as the options these high school students have as they look toward career and educational paths post-graduation.
This type of event wouldn’t be possible without the help of the following partners:
- The community of Fort Nelson and the Northern Rockies Regional Municipality:
- Mayor Rob Fraser
- Councillor Brenda Enax
- Councillor Lorraine Gerwing,
- Scott Barry, Chief Administrative Officer
- Diana Penney, Regional Health Liaison
- Doctors Mostert, Lupu, and Jarullah of Fort Nelson
- Northern Health
- School District 81
- UNBC and Shelley Raper, Admissions Site Coordinator and Student Affairs Coordinator for the Northern Medical Program
This program is a great example of the cooperative efforts and partnerships established between post-secondary institutions, school districts, rural communities, and Northern Health in regard to long-term recruitment of future health care professionals.
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