Experiential learning in the field

In 2019, Paige Enright was one of 30 students who undertook the Professional Practice Unit (PPU) and writes “I ventured off to Shepparton (a town approximately 2 hours north of Melbourne) to work with the Numurkah Health Service. My PPU sought to understand how food insecurity was experienced by people living in the Moira Shire and what services and health promotion activities were available in the community. My PPU allowed me to explore the Murray region, where I drove over 1,000km in 6 weeks to interview different service providers and to visit different Food Banks. I highly valued my PPU experience because I was able to work in an area I am very passionate about and embed myself in the local community to learn about service provider’s experiences to ensure I made practical recommendations in my final report”. Paige Enright, Australia

“During my time in the MPH programme, I had the privilege to be able to undertake two overseas experiences, firstly through the study abroad subject in Jamkhed, India, and then through an exchange semester at Lund University, Sweden. Both were absolutely wonderful experiences and left significant impacts on me both personally and professionally. My time in Sweden allowed me to get a better understanding of the fantastic Nordic public health systems, as well as their way of life. It had reaffirmed my strong belief in the necessity of a wellfunded national public healthcare system, as well as the importance of ensuring that all parts of our societies work in conjunction to promote good health - whether through urban infrastructure, social security, education, transport, food systems, or migration policies. Similarly, my time in Jamkhed was incredibly educational. The selfless work that the staff at the Comprehensive Rural Health Project undertake has been a source of continued inspiration, and the clear improvements they have delivered for the health of people in the surrounding towns and villages were remarkable, despite their limited budgets. To be perfectly honest, I cannot possibly even begin to describe the indelible impacts that the people at CRHP Jamkhed have left on me. It proved to me that public health was definitely the right choice of career for me, and the moral and material significance of helping marginalised and under-served populations. Recognising that global health is not simply “public health somewhere else”, these two experiences revealed to me that despite our geographical separation, for all of us in Australia, India, Sweden, and the rest of the world, the struggle to attain good health for all and to reduce health inequities is a common one. And perhaps that is the greatest impact of all from my two overseas experiences during the MPH - the affirmation that our struggles for a healthier people and a healthier planet are interlinked, and that we must work together with humility and mutual respect to overcome the immense challenges that face us.” Edwin Kwong, Australia