Nicola Roxon (Gellibrand, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Health and Ageing) Share this | Hansard source

I thank the member for Cunningham for her question. I know that she was particularly keen to follow this issue, because she, as well as many other members in the House, knows that if we are to deliver properly on health reform we need to have enough doctors, enough nurses, enough allied health professionals not only coming through our universities but also getting good clinical training experience in communities where they are needed.

That is why the Prime Minister and I were so delighted to announce last week the allocation of nearly half a billion dollars worth of Commonwealth investment in clinical training places for undergraduates. There are 22 professions including not just doctors and nurses—although nurses and midwives account for the lion’s share of this investment, as they need to—but also allied health professionals of all types. In the seat of Cunningham, the University of Wollongong, for example, is getting supported places for more psychology students and nursing places. I know that the member for Lingiari, as another example, would be very pleased that in Central Australia there are going to be supported places in nursing, physiotherapy and occupational therapy. I have not heard the member for Cowper, who was here before, comment on this, but I know that the member for Lyne has. The investments on the mid-North Coast, for example, are supporting more medical students, speech pathology students, physiotherapy students and nursing students across all of the mid-North Coast.

It is really important to emphasise here in this House why this investment is so significant. For the first time there has been a proper planning process about the need in the future for doctors, nurses and allied health professionals. For the first time we have invested money to ensure that students get training in places where there are shortages. Thirty-seven per cent of this money is going to support students in rural and regional Australia. Sixty per cent of the money is going to private and non-government organisations because this is to expand capacity; work that has been done well in our public hospitals needs to also be done in private settings. Forty-one per cent of this funding is going to priority areas where there are serious workforce issues. I know that the Minister for Mental Health and Ageing will be very pleased that 41 per cent is going into those areas like mental health, aged care and primary care where there has not been enough training in the past.

This is good news. Of course, it is in stark contrast to the approach taken by the Leader of the Opposition when he was the health minister. We are very proud that this multimillion-dollar investment is now turning into supported places for real nursing students, real doctors and real allied health professionals across the country.

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