Teaching medical students about children with disabilities in a rural setting in a school

Twenty six 4th year undergraduate medical students of the University of Newcastle completed their Paediatric studies based in Tamworth in 2004 & 2005 including an 8 week placement at Bullimbal School for Specific Purposes. The placement involved the students being actively involved in assisting with the delivery of a variety of activities aimed at improving the motor skills of a group of disabled children. De-identified data were obtained from completed evaluation surveys from 75% (21 of 26) of the medical students and from 100% (5 of 5) of the teachers.All students and teachers found the placement was acceptable and enjoyed the placement and felt that it gave the medical students a greater understanding of children with disabilities. 80% (4 of 5) of the teachers involved in the program did not feel that its implementation added to their workload and all were enthusiastic to continue with the program.Medical students can be effectively taught and have a valuable clinical experience in a school setting to learn about children with a disability. This educational innovation has provided a mutual benefit for both the medical students and the school children who participated in the program without impacting on the workloads of teachers.In Australian Medical Schools there is an increasing recognition that tertiary hospitals are not able to provide for all facets of a comprehensive undergraduate medical education. Modern medical curricula recognize that student directed learning and community orientation are important components of an undergraduate medical education. Recently in Australia there has been a rapid growth in the delivery of medical education in rural settings which has led to several innovations in community based medical education [1]. This paper will describe an innovation in the delivery of the community based components of the Paediatrics course of the Bachelor of Medicine program of the University of Newcastle delivered in a rural setting.In Australia ove