Mark Eager, Mobile Health Group CEO, with Cameron Dickey, 2023 Mobile Health Group | Hauora Taiwhenua scholarship winner, at National Rural Health Conference 2024
Hauora Taiwhenua Rural Health Network is partnering with Mobile Health Group to offer our rural youth financial support in their pursuit of health studies.
The four scholarships (with at least one targeted at Māori/Pasifika student) each valued at $5,000, will be offered to any rural youth entering their first year of full-time undergraduate study in Nursing, Medicine, or allied health related courses at any New Zealand Universities, Polytechnics, or PTEs.
Our rural health workforce has been under pressure for a long time due to chronic workforce shortages throughout rural New Zealand. We have a serious shortage of doctors, nurses, midwives and other health professionals in rural areas. In the next 10 years about 50% of our GPs are set to retire. While we currently rely on international doctors and nurses to fill the gaps in our rural workforce, the long-term solution is to train more doctors, nurses and other health professionals here in New Zealand and prepare and encourage them to work in our rural areas.
A solution to reducing the rural health care worker shortage, is through supporting the rural youth in these communities. Many universities and organisations already see the benefits of supporting rural youth in their pursuit, with programmes and pathways helping introduce and support them to varying health careers (Rural Health Careers Promotion programme, Rural Medical Immersion Programme, Regional Rural Admission Scheme, etc). However, we also understand that comes at a higher cost for rural youth due to the distances and often unfamiliar environments that they must move too.
This is where we see our scholarships having a positive impact in both encouraging more rural students to study health and supporting them to go after the health career they’re dreaming of.
The closing date for applications is 5pm, 30th September 2024. For more information on how to apply and the eligibility criteria, see the scholarship information and guidelines here.
