Rural, urban: the real world for medical education

The wider horizon — social responsibility

The 1992 Rural Health Incentives Program was a wide response to deterioration in rural health care and falling recruitment to rural general practice. Its Rural Undergraduate Steering Committee1 was charged with developing and implementing a program of undergraduate medical education for rural practice. Studies had suggested that graduates would be more likely to return to rural communities if they had a rural background and positive clinical attachments in rural health care. Funds were available for strategic plans for rural student recruitment, increased rural placements, rural health curricula and strengthened staffing, student support and rural clubs. Research and innovation was funded to develop new educational paradigms. An early example, the Flinders Parallel Rural Community Curriculum was the starting point of an international network.2