Spouse/Partner Education and Training Bursary

Bursaries are available to assist rural or remote medical spouses or partners wishing to undertake further education or training.

RMFN recognises the personal and professional development needs of rural and remote spouses/partners. The Education and Training Bursary is intended to enhance the quality of life and/or career opportunities for individual applicants and to aid in the ongoing support of the medical family in the rural/remote setting.

Any spouse or partner of a doctor living in a rural or remote area of Victoria located within RRMA 4 to 7 may be eligible to apply.  Applicants can apply for a bursary to assist them to undertake any course of study delivered by an accredited training organisation or qualified private provider. The bursaries are valued at up to $1,000 per applicant, per year.

For details on the next round of bursaries applications, contact the RMFN Program Development Officer on (03) 9349 7800.

Career Counselling Service

This service is available to the families of general practitioners working in rural Victoria. Secondary students, tertiary students and mature age people are eligible to have consultations with a careers counsellor by telephone, over the internet or in person. The service is provided by a career counsellor from Box Hill Institute (BHI) in Melbourne.

If you would like to access the career counselling service, please contact the RMFN Program Development Officer on (03) 9349 7800 to obtain an identification number and contact details.

Telephone Counselling Service

Meridian Life Development Consultants provide a professional telephone counselling service suitable for rural medical families to access when needed.

Telephone counselling is not just suited to those geographically isolated from specialist services, but may also be useful for those unable to travel to a counsellor's office (due to disability or time constraints) and for those living in smaller communities, who may be concerned that seeking counselling closer to home might not offer the privacy with which they would feel comfortable.

Rural GPs and their families are able to access Meridian's counsellors, free of charge, for up to the first two sessions. After that, the counsellor will explore and suggest appropriate referral options, including continuing sessions at your own expense.

To access the service call 1 800 333 621.