'Incubator programmes provide supportive environments for increased growth.’ Hawke’s Bay District Health Board has pioneered Programme Incubator which aims to motivate secondary school students into choosing a career in health. The programme has expanded to include a further five District Health Boards.
The programme is specifically designed to target young people from communities who are under-represented in health professions. The programme takes a whole workforce approach to health.
Year 12 and 13 students from lower decile schools with a high proportion of Maori and Pacific students experience six sessions of hands-on learning which includes meeting various health professionals and hearing about their work-lives. Work experience in health enables interested students to spend a day alongside a health professional.
The learning methodology is not to tell students about health careers but to be highly experiential, providing the “feel” for working in the health sector. The District Health Board also assists students by providing vacation employment. Students can also choose to stay in touch electronically through purposefully designed online discussions.
It is hoped Programme Incubator will contribute to regional retention of skills in the health sector or enable those who have experienced the incubator to return to the Hawke’s Bay region. A recent incubator participant wrote, “I’m convinced I’ve won the jackpot, nothing gets better than this. Joining the incubator programme was one of the biggest decisions I’ve made. I would recommend joining this programme to everyone who is thinking about pursuing a job in the health area. The incubator changed my attitude to school, to my career choice and to my future.”
FACT: New Zealand is critically short of skilled practitioners across all areas of health, including doctors, nurses, physiotherapists, occupational therapists, technicians and social service providers.
Benefits of an incubator programme:
- Provides legitimacy in the community and encourages trained professionals to return to the province they came from.
- Addresses labour shortages in the health care sector.
- Provides experiential, hands-on learning experiences for young people making career choices.
For further information contact:
Wynn Schollum
Hawke’s Bay DHB
Private Bag 9014, Hastings
Phone: +64 6 878 8109
Email: Wynn.schollum@hawkesbaydhb.govt.nz