The winners of a scholarship program to help the next generation of First Nations pharmacists has been announced, with a subsidy and support for Indigenous pharmacy students to help strengthen the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander workforce.
On Monday, the scholarships, which began in 2022 with two students and has been expanded to five, were announced by the National Aboriginal Community-Controlled Health Organisation (NACCHO), with a grant from Sanofi Australia.
Pharmacy students Dean Webber, James Sowter, Matthew Cloake, Isaac Burgoyne and Shi-Anne Wallace were announced as the scholarship winners, with Mr Burgoyne stating he would put his rural upbringing to "good use" and form greater connections between his community and the pharmacy practice.
"I am incredibly honoured to have been granted this scholarship from NACCHO for 2024. Pharmacy has always been a passion of mine and the opportunities that this scholarship will open for my future are endless," he said.
Ms Wallace said: "I am a proud aboriginal woman, a part of the Mamu mob, in the Innisfail region of far north Queensland. Receiving this scholarship means the world to me."
"It gives me the opportunity to be able to do what is best for my study and my career without the constant worry about the expenses of everyday living. I have more time to dedicate to my studies and be able to aim higher than ever before. This offer is life changing and I cannot wait to see where I go and what I can do with this support behind me," she said.
Congratulations to the 2024 NACCHO Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Pharmacist Scholarship recipients 🎊https://t.co/nB0W57BLnK
Proudly supported by @SanofiANZ#OurHealthInOurHands #PharmacistScholarship #DeadlyPharamcists pic.twitter.com/nP4IdBEEnq
— Our Health in Our Hands ❤️💛🖤 (@NACCHOAustralia) May 20, 2024
Mr Cloake noted the scholarship will allow him to focus on his studies by relieving the cost-of-living pressures and offering him mentoring to "ensure I am on the right track to set my career up and enter the workforce in the best shape to affect positive change in my community".
Nywaigi Mamu Bidjara woman and clinical pharmacist, Chastina Heck, was on the scholarship selection panel and said it was "incredibly exciting" to see the numbers of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander students who are choosing to study pharmacy.
"I personally know scholarships such as these provide financial assistance, but for some recipients the value may also translate to a sense of belonging to university life and the pharmacy profession," she said.
There remains a significant discrepancy in the number of Indigenous pharmacists, with only 0.3 per cent (about 100) of the more than 35,000 pharmacists in Australia identifying as Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander.
Despite making up 3.2 per cent of the Australian population, First Nations people comprise only 1.8 per cent of the total health workforce.
NACCHO said this disparity impacts patients, policy, and pharmacists themselves, and it hoped this scholarship is a "step in the right direction" to increasing the number of Indigenous pharmacy students graduating and entering the workforce.
Sanofi Australia and New Zealand Country Lead, Liz Selby, congratulate the scholarship winners, as well as NACCHO for their leadership in the program.
"Building the skills of future Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander pharmacists is essential for ensuring culturally safe care within the pharmacy profession," Ms Selby said.
