Opinion & Perspectives
30 October, 2026
A message from East Grampians Health Service Chief Executive Nick Bush
It is with sadness that I write this Advocate column. This is due to the cowardly attack on the Federal Member for Indi, Helen Haines. Helen is the independent member of the electorate that is based around Wangaratta who was run down by a car outside her electorate office.
Helen was successful in advocating for the Federal Government to pay for the clinical placements for nursing, midwifery and allied health professions, including social work, psychology, physiotherapy, occupational therapy, speech pathology, paramedicine, radiography, pharmacy, rehabilitation therapy, audiology and podiatry. I have been very supportive of Helen and her policy endeavours about reducing the poverty confronted by students undertaking health-related courses.
Having worked in a rural health service as a nurse/midwife, Helen was very aware of the challenges for rural nursing and health professional students who have to leave their own homes to gain the experience and skills in health services some distance away.
This requires students to rent accommodation, forgo part-time work in their home town and incur the associated costs with living away from home. Helen was in essence supporting the East Grampians Health Service ‘grow your own’ workforce development strategy, so we fully backed her endeavours and celebrated when the goal we shared was achieved.
Visionary policy makers like Helen Haines should be celebrated - an attack like this makes me question what has happened to our society that this could occur, and in rural Victoria.
One thing I know is there are many Ararat nursing and health professional students who appreciate the support Helen Haines has achieved for them, to have paid clinical placements to offset the costs they incur whilst building their skills.
I am sure each one of these people is thankful for this policy. I certainly am as our pursuit to ensure more Ararat residents study allied professions will be made easier by Helen Haines’ vision and advocacy, which will change the face of rural nursing and health professional training for the better.
Read More: Ararat