Support Services at the Royal Women's Hospital work collaboratively with health professionals, women and newborn infants, their families and communities to provide care that meets all of their health needs. Support Services at the Women's are also known as 'Allied Health'.
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| | student placement opportunities
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| | (03) 8345 3047
(03) 8345 3048
| AWHBU
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| Where this fits with operational plans
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| | |  | | | Where this fits with operational plans
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| | | | | | | | | Training placements for interpreting students at RMIT.
Training placements for NMIT students studying English Cert III or IV and considering an interpreting career.
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| | | Clinical placement for dietetic students from Deakin and Monash universities. Limited work experience placements.
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| | | | | | Student placements and training hours for preregistration pharmacists organised through the university.
Also see Pharmacy Education and Training
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| | | Clinical placements through Melbourne and LaTrobe Universities for undergraduate students, Masters and Clinical Doctoral physiotherapists
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| | | | | | Social work student placements in partnership with Melbourne University (also available to students from other universities).
A New Graduate Social Work position is advertised each year.
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Aboriginal Women's Health Business Unit (AWHBU)
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Aboriginal Women's Health Business Unit staff are Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander women. They are employed in a community development role and provide cultural support and advocacy to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander women and their families. AWHBU also provides secondary consultation, education and training to health professionals.
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Biomedical Engineering
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Biomedical engineers, technologists and administrative staff are part of a team responsible for ensuring that medical equipment in the hospital is operating in accordance with manufacturers' specifications and regulatory requirements.
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Family and Reproductive Rights Education (FARREP)
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FARREP workers are from communities affected by FGM/circumcision. They work in a community development role providing cultural support and advocacy to women affected by FGM/circumcision and to their families. FARREP workers also provide secondary consultation, education and training to health professionals.
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Genetic Counselling
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Genetic counsellors provide expert advice, information and counselling for woman and their families about prenatal screening and testing, risk of genetic conditions including thalassemia and possible teratogenic exposure during pregnancy.
Counsellors also arrange consultations for couples with a known fetal abnormality, and diagnoses of suspected genetic syndromes in newborns. This is a joint service between the Women’s and Genetic Health Services Victoria.
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Health Information Services (HIS)
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Health Information Service (HIS) provides a range of services for the Women's Hospital including record retrieval, clinical coding, system administration and forms design.
Health Information Managers (HIMs) within HIS have many years of experience in information management and can provide advice and guidance to staff and the wider community on all aspects of health information management.
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Interpreters (Language Services)
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Staff interpreters at the Women's interpret in 16 languages. The main languages required at the Women's are Arabic, Chinese (Mandarin and Cantonese), Turkish, Vietnamese, Greek, Somali, Serbian and Spanish. Interpreters in other languages can be provided on request.
Interpreters are all professionally accredited and are specialised in women's health terminology. They are familiar with women's health issues, medical contexts and clinical procedures.
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Nutrition and Dietetics
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Dietitians at the Women's provide nutritional care to inpatients and outpatients of the hospital and to the broader community associated with the hospital. They have specialist knowledge of nutrition and women's health through all stages of life, including pregnancy and lactation, adolescence and older women's health. The department is also involved in research and training.
All Dietitians must meet minimum professional qualifications to practice as a dietitian, and must be members of the Dietitians Association of Australia and eligible for status as an Accredited Practising Dietitian.
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Pastoral care and spirituality services
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Pastoral workers are professionals employed by the hospital to provide pastoral and spiritual ministry to patients, their families and staff, that is appropriate to particular beliefs and consistent with the Australia Council of Healthcare guidelines for chaplaincy and pastoral care. Their work complements the care provided by other disciplines.
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Pharmacy
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Pharmacists working at the Women's provide comprehensive, clinically focused pharmacy services to all patients and staff in the hospital. Pharmacists also advocate the quality use of medications and provide information to patients, carers and other health professionals.
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Physiotherapy
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Physiotherapists at the Women’s provide assessments and treatment to both inpatients and outpatients. They have specialist knowledge of:
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- women's health through all stages of the life cycle, including pregnancy, the post-natal period, menopause and older women’s health
- the treatment of back and pelvic pain associated with pregnancy
- mastitis
- prolapse and incontinence
- pregnancy fitness
- physical preparation for childbirth.
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All physiotherapists are registered for practice in Victoria and are encouraged to be members of the Australian Physiotherapy Association.
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Reproductive Loss Services
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This service is coordinated through a sole position and comprises a multi-disciplinary team providing care and support for women when they experience a pregnancy loss. The team focuses on providing holistic care to bereaved families. The role of coordinator crosses all areas of the hospital and ensures that effective resources, systems and links with consumer organisations are developed and maintained.
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Social Work
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Social workers at the Women's are employed across a diverse range of areas including Women's Social Support Services, the Pregnancy Advisory Service, CASA House, the Women’s Alcohol and Drug Service, Reproductive Loss, the Reproductive Biology Unit and the Sexual Assault Crisis Line.
Social work practice at the Women's is underpinned by a commitment to the social model of health and encompasses psychosocial assessment, counselling, advocacy, information and referral as well as discharge planning. Social Workers are also actively engaged in research, education and training and are employed in service coordination and management.
Social workers at the Women's Hospital are required to be members of, or eligibility for membership of the Australian Association of Social Workers.
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