Local healthcare professionals join CQUniversity’s call for a $27.5M government boost to expand allied health courses

Healthcare professionals are calling on the major two parties to agree to a multimillion-dollar funding boost to expand allied health courses at CQUniversity in Far North Queensland.

Calls to address regional health workforce shortages. Picture: Supplied.

Healthcare professionals are calling on the major two parties to agree to a multimillion-dollar funding boost to expand allied health courses at CQUniversity in Far North Queensland.

With demand for Occupational Therapists in the region rising by 20 per cent in the past five years, the healthcare industry is struggling to meet its needs, experts say.

Cairns Occupational Therapy director Kerry Stingel said the business struggled to hire therapists because they were “trained elsewhere and tend to stay there”.

It comes after CQUniversity called on ALP and the Coalition to agree to a $27.5m bipartisan commitment to create new health courses at their Cairns campus in a push to help solve regional workforce shortages long term.

“Without local training opportunities, we can’t attract the professionals we need,” Ms Stingel said.

CQUniversity Associate Vice President, Far North QLD Region Jodie Duignan-George and Vice-Chancellor Professor Nick Klomp review a new design of the provider's Cairns CBD campus, contingent on additional federal funding. Picture: Arun Singh Mann

CQUniversity associate vice president Jodie Duignan-George said government support was critical to expand health programs at the new campus.

“As part of our strategy to address (shortages), we are prioritising the growth of our allied health programs,” she said

“However, delivering specialised programs like medical imaging and occupational therapy is costly, and additional government support is essential to make it happen.”

CQU has committed to offering “homegrown” OT training, hoping to attract and retain students in the region.

“The need for more health workers locally continues to grow and we need to turn the tide before access to healthcare locally gets worse,” she said.

At a recent Cairns Careers Expo, #GoHealth, CQUniversity staff engaged with high school students interested in healthcare careers.

Occupational Therapists in the region rising by 20 per cent in the past five years. Picture: iStock.

Jodie Dunigan-George, Associate Vice President North and Far North Queensland for CQUniversity. Photo: Supplied.

Ms Duignan-George said the expo highlighted the strong desire for local training opportunities, with many students eager to pursue their studies in Cairns.

“Our goal is to provide local training that enables students to stay and work in the region, filling the critical workforce gaps upon graduation,” she said.

Additionally she said government funding would allow more local students to study and qualify in Cairns, strengthening the region’s healthcare workforce.

“The expansion of specialised programs like Occupational Therapy and Medical Imaging requires significant investment, and additional government support is crucial.”

Currently CQUniversity offers a range of health-related courses, including occupational therapy, allied health, psychology, social work, community services, nursing, and paramedicine. 

The $27.5m would support training in medical imaging and radiography courses could be offered in Cairns.

If successful, a Bachelor of Medical Imaging would be available at CQUniversity by 2026, which is expected to address workforce shortages in the long term.

It comes after the Cairns Post’s Critical Condition campaign successfully reinstated a lost diagnostic breast cancer service with radiology clinics struggling to fill positions and

attract new recruits.

Originally published as Local healthcare professionals join CQUniversity’s call for a $27.5M government boost to expand allied health courses