Greener pastures: healthcare students finding better working conditions in rural areas

Healthcare students are finding better working and living conditions at their rural placements than in Auckland.

Auckland University nursing student Michaela Buckley has found the staffing situation more ideal at her rural placement at Whakatāne Hospital.

“In Auckland, a lot of the nurses seem quite burnt out which can lead to a hostile workplace.

“Down here the staff are more willing to teach, they have more trust in you and the team is more collaborative - there isn’t so much of a hierarchy between nurses and doctors."

AUT Medical Laboratory Science student Aveshan Naidoo also found a more positive staffing environment whilst he was placed at Pathlab Rotorua for three months.

“There, the staff had a really good relationship with each other, the hours were good, and everyone was willing to help each other out.”

Buckley says working in a smaller town area allows you to be more exposed to different patients and gives a more holistic view of medical care.

“In Auckland, there are so many different specialists you can be sent to whereas here, we learn about what everyone does, as patients only have one place to go.”

Naidoo says he not only enjoyed the working conditions whilst on placement but the living conditions too.

“I lived five minutes away from work so a full tank of gas pretty much lasted me most of my time there, whereas here, gas is so expensive and only lasts a week.

“There was also good staff parking, here if you’re placed at Middlemore, you’re battling to find parking at all.”

Naidoo says moving to a rural town is the smarter choice financially.

“Although it means moving from where you grew up, the minute you leave, the work is better, your rent is lower, and the cost of living is cheaper.”

A Massey University Home Affordability Report from December 2023 compared the affordability of different areas as a percentage of the national average.

The report showed smaller town areas such as Gisborne, Taranaki, Nelson and the West Coast had affordability percentages ranging from 58-84, whereas Auckland had a 121 per cent affordability.

Buckley thinks that these factors show hospitals in Auckland could be doing more for their healthcare students whilst on placement and once they enter the workforce.

“When you don’t have ideal staffing, the work commute is long then you can’t find parking and your expenses are so much higher, like how it is in Auckland, working rurally just seems so much more appealing.

LISTEN HERE: for more of Michaela Buckley’s experience of her rural placement in Whakatāne.