Pharmacy and allied health students are banding together to raise awareness and affect change for healthcare students experiencing placement poverty, with the official launch of the Health Students Alliance in Brisbane last week.
The national coalition, which was originally formed in January and backed by 40 student associations, including the National Australian Pharmacy Students' Association (NAPSA), is leading the call to expand Commonwealth Prac Payments to pharmacy and allied health students.
Students from across pharmacy and allied health gather to hear from speakers during the official launch.
At the Brisbane launch, NAPSA President Sebastian Harper spoke about how financial hardship is forcing students to reconsider their careers—threatening the future of Australia’s healthcare workforce.
“To Australian patients, I say that at the moment, your healthcare system is breaking or broken,” Sebastian said. “And one of the big reasons for that is we don’t have enough health professionals—not just doctors and nurses, but also pharmacists, physiotherapists, occupational therapists, and speech pathologists.”
Pharmacy and allied health students are required to complete up to 1,000 hours of unpaid placement, often in locations far from home. Many students can’t afford to stop working, yet they must cover placement-related travel and accommodation costs while still paying rent, bills, and groceries.
“For a lot of students, placements mean doubling up on expenses—paying for accommodation at their placement site while still covering rent and bills back home,” Sebastian explained.
NAPSA Treasurer and Policy & Advocacy Director Mia Avram (left), JCU pharmacy student Shi-Anne Wallace (centre), NAPSA President and HSA spokesperson Sebastian Harper (right).
A national survey of pharmacy students found:
- 84% had to take unpaid leave from work for placements
- 86% experienced financial hardship during placements
- 56% skipped meals due to financial strain
With cost-of-living pressures continuing to rise, many students are questioning whether they can afford to finish their degrees—further straining an already struggling healthcare system.
The 2024 Federal Budget introduced Commonwealth Prac Payments for nursing, midwifery, teaching, and social work students, but left out pharmacy and allied health—despite meeting the same criteria of highly feminised workforces, unpaid placement requirements, and workforce shortages.
“We fully support the government’s decision to fund placements for nursing and midwifery students, but the reality is that pharmacy and allied health students face the same struggles,” Sebastian said. “If we don’t act now, placement poverty will only worsen workforce shortages.”
At the Brisbane launch, the Health Students Alliance officially kicked off its national campaign, urging the government to expand Commonwealth Prac Payments to pharmacy and allied health students from July 2025.
Health Students Alliance holds free BBQ for health students to help with cost of living crisis.
Their message is clear: Look After Us Today, So We Can Look After You Tomorrow.
With both major parties making cost of living and healthcare workforce shortages key election issues, students are demanding action to ensure that all future healthcare professionals receive the support they need.
Sebastian says the solution is simple.
“It’s all well and good to invest billions into Medicare, but unless we support students through their training, there won’t be enough healthcare professionals to deliver those services,” he said. “Expanding Prac Payments is the most effective way to secure Australia’s healthcare workforce.”
The Health Students Alliance is a coalition of peak organisations for pharmacy and allied health students from across Australia, representing professionals across the health sector. It was formed to highlight the financial pressures on students in these fields and to advocate for the Federal Government to introduce paid placements as a matter of urgency.
