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*Acknowledgements omitted*
The first graduands from the Charles Sturt University – what an incredible milestone!
This is an achievement worth celebrating for you, your families, your university and your communities.
It reflects years of dedication – lectures, practicals, exams and placements.
Long hours of physiology, anatomy and pharmacology.
As a pharmacist myself, I know a bit about the last one.
You’ve also learned how to connect with others.
To care for patients.
And to support their families.
That’s at the heart of medicine – and such valuable preparation for your careers ahead.
The program is the result of an even longer-term vision.
Between the Commonwealth Government and universities long before its launch in 2021 at Charles Sturt in Orange.
Together, we’ve created a pathway for students from rural and regional communities to study, train and practise as doctors close to home.
Strengthening health care and strengthening communities across regional Australia.
This started with a need – to boost Australia’s regional health workforce.
And with an idea about how to best meet that need.
Experience tells us medical graduates who come from, and study in, rural and regional areas are far more likely to stay and practise in those communities – from boots to scrubs.
That’s why we set out to create pathways for local people to train as health practitioners, including as medical doctors.
Among people who know their communities.
Love where they live.
And want to stay and make a difference.
People like Dr Connor Martin, our speaker on behalf of the graduates today. He is from Tamworth and will be returning there for his internship.
This medical program we’re celebrating today is supported through the government’s Rural Health Multidisciplinary Training Program and the Murray-Darling Medical Schools Network.
The goal is simple but powerful – to improve the distribution of our health workforce by offering students positive training experiences in rural and regional communities.
Each year, we invest more than 250 million dollars in the Rural Health Multidisciplinary Training Program.
The investment supports:
- 20 rural clinical schools like this one
- 19 university departments of rural health, and
- 28 regional training hubs.
Together, they deliver rural clinical training and education for medical, nursing, midwifery, allied health and dental students across Australia.
Charles Sturt University receive 8.9 million dollars under this program.
This funding helps provide practical supports for students on placement – subsidised accommodation, research support and financial assistance.
Our aim is to inspire students today to choose lasting careers in rural health.
The Murray-Darling Medical Schools Network takes this even further offering long-term, end‑to‑end medical training and education across rural New South Wales and Victoria.
Across its 5 medical schools, we expect to see 146 medical graduates each year.
Over time this will make a real difference to access to care for people in country communities.
I congratulate Charles Sturt University on your independent recognition, as well as receiving 10 additional Commonwealth Support Places for commencing students in 2026, taking the total to 47 CSPs.
Fostering a home-grown workforce and training future doctors in the regions.
To all the graduands, I wish you every success in your medical careers, delivering care where it’s needed most.
And know that your work makes a difference to the health and wellbeing of country communities now and in the future.