Toowoomba Regional Clinical Unit

Program delivery and operations in Toowoomba are based at UQ’s Teaching and Learning Centre, adjacent to the Toowoomba Hospital.

The Toowoomba Regional Clinical Unit is headed by Dr Doogie Whitcombe.

RCS Toowoomba team

About the region

Toowoomba is roughly 125 km west of Brisbane. It sits atop the Great Dividing Range, at a comfortable 700 metres above sea level. Toowoomba is a dynamic regional town with a population of more than 100,000 people. As the main centre for the Darling Downs Region, it’s a hub for industry, commerce, education and health. The traditional custodians of the land are the Giabal and Jarowair Peoples.

Known as the Garden City, Toowoomba enjoys four distinct seasons. The town has a rich heritage and lively culture, playing host to numerous major cultural and sporting events throughout the year. It’s also the perfect place to sample the region’s abundant local produce.

Find out more about the Toowoomba region

Teaching

Students appreciate the small group teaching and often one on one learning opportunities provided. The opportunity to create meaningful networks with all levels of medical, allied health, nursing and other professionals is also an advantage of being located in Toowoomba.

Clinical training is delivered through a mix of public and private healthcare providers, including:

Toowoomba Base Hospital
St Vincent’s Private Hospital
St Andrew’s Hospital
Private practitioners
Allied health practitioners.

Facilities

Accommodation

Student Club

The Toowoomba Medical Student Club provides an opportunity for students to be engaged with both the RCS and Community. Students are encouraged to raise funds for a charity over the year through organised social events. The student club can also be a vehicle for arranging learning opportunities with the assistance of the RCS.

Trivia Nights
Music Nights
Lawn Bowls
Community Events
Guest lectures
Networking opportunities
Participation in the annual Carnival of Flowers

Meet our students

Meet Joel

Dr Joel Bloomfield has spent his last two years studying medicine with The University of Queensland Rural Clinical School (UQRCS) in Toowoomba before graduating with a Doctor of Medicine (MD).

Living and working in a regional town like Toowoomba is Joel's goal and stayed in Toowoomba for his intern year with Darling Downs Health with his first rotation in anaesthetics.

“At the moment I’m aiming for either Anaesthetics or Emergency, my eventual goal is to end up a part of a helicopter retrieval team," Joel said.

"The RCS has a day where you go to the life flight base for a tour and to be actors in a mass casualty event, in addition there are often requests for students to be ultrasound models at the same base.

"These events allowed me to see the sort of work they do and put me in touch with the people working there.

Joel said he would definitely recommend studying in Toowoomba to other medical students as he has found the clinicians have more time for students and the town isn’t as busy as living in Brisbane.

"A good example of the RCS experience would be getting one on one teaching from various members of the team at the hospital, then going up against them later at a pub trivia.

"There are so many extra opportunities to learn, even beyond the extra simulations that the RCS staff put together, and there are so many social events where you’ll know people there.

"You’re a known member of the community here," he said.

Meet Kurt

Dr Kurt Heckenberg is one of our 2022 cohort from Toowoomba Regional Clinical Unit.

Kurt stayed in Toowoomba in 2023, for his intern year at Toowoomba Base Hospital, with the professional connections he has made during his time in Toowoomba RCS and his familiarity with the hospital, made his transition smooth.

"I lived in Toowoomba prior to med school and I enjoy the area, so it was a pretty easy decision to stay," he said.

"I also appreciate the relatively cheaper housing and minimal commute time associated with living regionally.

"I definitely see myself working in a regional/rural/remote area.

"I don’t have any strong preference to where exactly as yet and I’m happy to see where my life and training takes me, but I will try to avoid the city as much as possible.

"My career aspirations are to make a positive and enduring contribution to my local community while trying to find that elusive “work-life balance” that I keep hearing about."

Kurt said the RCS was excellent at providing realistic simulation workshops that gave him the practical skills and knowledge he will be relying on as a junior doctor.

"I would recommend that students, especially those who’ve grown up in cities, spend at least one of their clinical years at an RCS.

"Even if they’re not interested in rural medicine, it is a way to appreciate the unique health and resourcing challenges faced by regional areas that ultimately has flow-on effects to the metro health systems.

"Additionally, a rural year will provide a taste of a lifestyle that may be surprisingly appealing!"

Meet Tiana

Tiana is a Year 3 MD student, currently studying in Toowoomba.

What enticed you to study medicine?

I have always loved problem solving, interacting with a variety of people on a daily basis and biology!

What’s your accommodation like in Toowoomba?

I live in the UQ accommodation within Toowoomba in a 2-bedroom unit. It is only a 5 minute walk from the Base Hospital. The benefit of living in an 11-unit property with all medical students, is that it allows us to easily have group study sessions or board game nights alike!

What enticed you to study in Toowoomba?

I decided to go to Toowoomba for my placement years due to the smaller teaching groups, more hands on approach within the hospital and positive feedback I had heard from other students.

What do you enjoy most about living and studying in Toowoomba?

The best part of living and studying in Toowoomba is the close knit friendships you build and extra procedural opportunities that rural hospitals provide.

Your favourite moment of your studies so far?

Favourite moment of my studies so far has been the increased opportunities to see patients independently and procedural skills I have practiced so far.

What was your pathway into medicine?

My pathway into medicine was Provisional Entry Medicine with a Bachelor of Science majoring in Biomedical Science (2017-2019), after sitting UMAT in Year 12 (2016).

What do you enjoy doing in your spare time in Toowoomba?

My spare time is filled catching up with friends doing board games nights or brunches, attending medical society social events, rehearsing for the medical musical and going to the gym.

Meet Raja

“I feel you’re able to connect more with the community. In a big hospital you’re not always seeing the day-to-day impact of your decisions on your patients' life. In Toowoomba, you really have to think about their situation - how far away do they live, when am I seeing them next, how much care can I offer given they may have traveled 5 hours."