GUMS | Advocacy
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Advocacy

Advocacy is one of the core components of GUMS and it is integral to our mission that we passionately represent our members. The GUMS advocacy portfolio seeks to support and provide a voice for Griffith medical students to better our medical program in terms of quality, equality, and equity.

The advocacy team is responsible for representing the voice of Griffith medical students by providing communication channels between the student body and School of Medicine. We work to ensure all students have equal access to opportunities, excellent curriculum, fair assessments, pathways for remediation, and we strive to foster a spirit of collaboration between staff and students.

If you have an issue you would like communicated to the School, or require support in a matter, please reach out to your representative listed below. 

Position Representative Email
Year 1 Advocacy Representative Gold Coast (GC) Charlotte McHenry -
Year 1 Advocacy Representative Sunshine Coast (SC) Nanda Muik -
Year 2 Advocacy Representative Gold Coast (GC) Romain Trippitelli -
Year 2 Advocacy Representative Sunshine Coast (SC) Allison Jones -
Year 3 Advocacy Representative Gold Coast (GC) Caitlin Thomas -
Year 3 Advocacy Representative Sunshine Coast (SC) Joshua D’Souza -
Year 4 Advocacy Representative Gold Coast (GC) Ali Wilson -
Year 4 Advocacy Representative Sunshine Coast (SC) Harley Stiebel -
Year 3 Rural Representative Saran Takemura -
Year 4 Rural Representative Melanie Hobi -
GCUH Representative Ryan Churchill -
SCUH Representative Joshua D’Souza -
The Tweed Hospital Representative Emmanuella Takyi -
Logan Hospital Representative Sufi Sharma -
QEII Hospital Representative Christopher Camardra -
Wesley Hospital Representative TBC -

THE ROLE OF ADVOCACY

  • Represent the student body on advocacy issues with individual staff and academic managers. We also achieve this by attending School level meetings and voicing student concerns through these more official channels. These meetings include:
    • Year level committee meetings 
    • School-wide committee meetings (MPC, MDSCC)
  • Organise year level and hospital representatives to gain feedback and maintain regular communication with the advocacy officers and the relevant cohort throughout the year.
  • Work alongside AMSA to campaign for large scale progress through our government and policy changes, advocating for the rights and safety of medical students Australia-wide.

 USEFUL LINKS

Doctors Health Advisory Service Queensland- DHAS(Q) is an organisation developed, managed and operated by doctors, on a voluntary basis, which makes available assistance for colleagues, including medical students, to provide advice regarding any life difficulties, such as mental health, substance use, and financial crises. http://dhasq.org.au/ – (07) 3833 4352

Australian Medical Board: Good medical practice: a code of conduct – describes what is expected of all doctors registered to practise medicine in Australia.  http://www.medicalboard.gov.au/Codes-Guidelines-Policies/Code-of-conduct.aspx

Australian Health Practitioner Regulation Agency– AHPRA supports the 14 national health boards responsible for regulating the health professions, maintaining a register, to make sure staff and students are safe to practice and adhere to their code of conduct.

https://www.ahpra.gov.au/About-AHPRA/Who-We-Are.aspx

Australian Medical Students’ Association– AMSA advocates on behalf of Australian’s 17, 000 medical students, and publishes a policy platform for advocacy action. https://www.amsa.org.au/advocacy/