Haicong is an international student from China currently studying a Master of Advanced Health Services Management (Planning Major) at UTS. He chose to pursue a placement at WHO CC UTS due to his strong interest in health workforce development and health system reform. He has worked in public hospitals in Australia throughout his bachelor’s and master’s studies for the past 4 years.
During his time at the Centre, Haicong has conducted literature reviews, synopsis writing, data collection reviews, and assisted in project management. He assisted with data analysis, writing and proofreading of reports for publication. Meanwhile, he was responsible for formatting and referencing publications. During his time at the Centre, he assisted in projects such as Basic Psychosocial Skills: training for COVID-19 responders course and Development of the National Curricula for Diploma of General Nursing and Certificate for Community Health Workers in Papua New Guinea. He also did a synopsis on the development of the primary health care system in the Solomon Islands. He found that working at the Centre was also able to practice prioritising tasks and managing the flexibility of workload. He enjoyed his experience building up teamwork with the staff and other interns of the Centre.
His experience at WHO CC UTS allowed him to acquire a deeper understanding of health services planning, workforce education, and primary health care development. His experience also helped him acknowledge how cultural diversity, economy, geography and technology can impact a nation’s primary health services and workforce development. The experience at the Centre gained many of the skills he needed to achieve his career objectives. He believes this experience can help him pursue a research degree in public health in the future.