Students in Tasmania’s north-west region are getting an inside glimpse into careers in rural and remote health.

The University of Tasmania’s Rural Clinical School has thrown open its doors to students interesting in pursing a career in medicine, nursing and allied health.

Forty-one students from Latrobe and Ulverstone, in the state’s north-west coastal region, are attending workshops on the health sector as part of the sixth annual North West Health Careers Education Program.

The program, run in conjunction with the Tasmanian Department of Education, the Devonport Community Health Centre and the North West Area Health Service, enables students to attend workshops covering a range of health professions, including physiotherapy, social work, aged care and medicine.

In October, students living between Penguin and the West Coast will also get a chance to take part in the program.

The Burnie-based Rural Clinical School is a hub of clinical teaching and research in north-west Tasmania.

One of 14 rural clinical schools across Australia, the school has a focus on medical undergraduate education in rural and remote settings and supports students, health professionals and researchers working in the Cradle Coast region.

The Rural Clinical Schools program is designed to encourage medical students to take up a career in rural practice by enabling them to undertake extended clinical training placements in rural locations.

The program also seeks to have a more immediate impact on the rural medical workforce by encouraging health professionals to take up rural academic positions, often through joint funding arrangements with local area health services.