Rural resident specialists

The Health Workforce Scholarship Program (HWSP) is an initiative of the Australian Government Department of Health, administered in Western Australia by Rural Health West.

The HWSP provides scholarships and bursaries to help health professionals in remote and rural Australia retain and enhance their skills, capacity and scope of practice. Funding is available to medical, nursing, midwifery, allied health, dental and Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander health professionals, who provide primary care services in the Aboriginal Community Controlled Health Services sector, private practice or non-government organisations in rural and remote WA.

Funding is available for eligible health professionals to cover:

• short courses, workshops, online training and conferences;
• postgraduate studies;
• training related expenses such as travel and accommodation.

Application rounds are typically held twice per year in March and September. Read more or register your interest to be notified when the next funding round opens.

Partners of Western Australian rural general practitioners, hospital doctors, medical specialists, nurses and midwives can apply for a grant to assist with training and education expenses to enhance their career and employment opportunities whilst living in a rural location. Grants up to $1000 per year are available for partners of rural health professionals to contribute towards

• Course fees
• Professional Development such as webinars, online courses, conference registration fees
• Postgraduate studies
• Membership to professional associations
• Training related expenses such as course resources, direct travel and accommodation costs

Read more or download an application form for partner education grants.

Rural Health West has collaborated with key stakeholders to develop regional professional networks to support health professionals working in rural Western Australia. The networks provide opportunities for health professionals to network, upskill and collaborate with others in the region. There are currently four networks operating (see below), with networks to be rolled out to the remaining regions throughout 2021.

• Goldfields Health Professionals Network
• Midwest-Gascoyne Health Professionals Network
• Pilbara Health Professionals Network
• South West Health Professionals Network
• Wheatbelt Health Professionals Network
• Great Southern Health Professionals Network

The WA Rural Health Awards recognise and acknowledge health professionals who have dedicated their careers to caring for rural communities, as well as celebrate the achievements of clinicians who have enhanced the range and quality of medical care available in rural locations.

Since 2008 Rural Health West has proudly hosted the annual WA Rural Health Awards (previously WA Country Doctors Awards) to recognise the outstanding contributions made by health professionals working in rural communities. Since 2017 WA Country Health Service has partnered with Rural Health West to recognise both long service and excellence in rural health care.

Award nominations are typically invited in September, with the Awards hosted as part of the WA Rural Health Conference in March.

For further information about the Awards, visit the WA Rural Health Awards website.