Dr Wayne Loudon1, Associate Professor Deb Duthie2
1Queensland Ambulance Service, Brisbane, Australia, 2Queensland University of Technology, Brisbane, Australia
Deb is a Wakka Wakka Warumungu woman and the Director of Indigenous Health in the Faculty of Health. She provides cultural supervision for paramedic, nursing and social work students completing their clinical placements in a rural Indigenous Community.
Presentation Title and Overview: Paramedic Student Placements in rural First Nations Communities
Registered Paramedics who are stationed and attend in Australian First Nations communities are often the first point of contact for healthcare when medical emergencies arise. As such, it is vital that Paramedics are culturally safe in their practice and understand the importance of Community engagement in building authentic relationships – the relationships between paramedics and Indigenous communities are vital starting points for community members health and wellbeing. One method to produce culturally safe Paramedics is to commence their learning prior to registration, via University studies. In this project – a partnership between Queensland Ambulance Service and Queensland University of Technology, Paramedic students are offered the opportunity to undertake their placement at a QAS station that services a discreet First Nations Community. This presentation outlines the processes of preparing paramedic students for such a placement, including mandatory orientation sessions in culturally safe practice, the use of reflective practice to encourage continuous adaptation and learning whilst reflecting on one’s actions, values and assumptions. This project aims to enhance university student cultural safety proficiency while concurrently providing basic first aid training to the community, thereby fostering community health and well-being. Through this approach, community members will not only improve their health engagement but also gain insights into potential career trajectories within the field of paramedicine.