The University of Notre Dame Kimberley immersion program assists up to 100 second-year medical students develop an understanding of life in remote Western Australia. The program provides an opportunity for students to engage with people in non-medical settings across the Kimberley, such as pastoral stations, schools, art galleries and community organisations.
Previous years saw the students placed at stations and organisations around Derby and Fitzroy Crossing for a week, where they received a thorough introduction to life in the Kimberley. Due to COVID-19, the 2022 program was delivered in a hybrid format, with 85 students visiting the West Kimberley (Broome and Derby) from Friday 12 to Monday 15 August 2022, before commencing the virtual program with online community hosts upon their return to Perth.
Over the years, this program has had a direct impact with a number Notre Dame students choosing to move to the Kimberley to complete their penultimate year of medical school with The Rural Clinical School of WA, undertake their final year of studies in a rural location, take up post-graduate opportunities in the bush, and some have moved to the Kimberley permanently.
This year, the students met with University of Notre Dame alumni who have moved to Broome and Derby with the aim to improve health outcomes for the community, and make the most of the Kimberley lifestyle.
This video captures their experience and explores how the program is luring young doctors back to the bush.