Paying doctors’ uni debts if they go rural a winning incentive, review finds
A government-commissioned review found that 80% of doctors exiting the scheme continued to work in rural and remote areas.
Most doctors given university debt relief in exchange for working rurally stay there once the benefits end, a government-ordered review has found.
Almost 400 doctors have applied to the HELP Debt Reduction Program for rural health practitioners (Med-HELP) since it began in 2022.
The program completely wipes university debt for doctors and nurse practitioners who work at least 24 hours a week in Modified Monash (MM) areas 3-5 — large or small rural towns — for as long as their degree took or half that time in more remote areas.
The review, which looked at 2022-25, said 80% of the doctors who exited the scheme, having partly or fully paid down their debt, were still working in rural and remote areas.
