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Speaker 1: Well, the territory has big plans to grow our own doctors,

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Speaker 1: but unfortunately they've taken a real step back. With Charles

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Speaker 1: Darwin University not able to well to get that Commonwealth

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Speaker 1: funding to train forty medical students in the Northern Territory.

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Speaker 1: The Union teamed up with the Menzi School of Health

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Speaker 1: and Western Sydney University to form the CDU Menzi School

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Speaker 1: of Medicine, which was hoping to secure twenty one point

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Speaker 1: eight million dollars but only received two point eight million.

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Speaker 1: Now joining us on the line to explain the situation further,

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Speaker 1: Charles Darwin University's Health pro Vice Chancellor, Professor Dominic Upton,

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Speaker 1: Good morning to your professor.

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Speaker 2: Morning Katie. How are you this morning?

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Speaker 3: Not too bad? Thank you?

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Speaker 1: I hope you're well, professor. Tell me what exactly has

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Speaker 1: happened here?

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Speaker 2: Well, I think so. CBU has been aspiring to develop

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Speaker 2: a medical program to addressed the needs of doctors in

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Speaker 2: the territory, as you mentioned, and we hope that we'll

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Speaker 2: be able to get our CSP places, which is Commonwealth

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Speaker 2: supported places, through this particular initiative that the federal government

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Speaker 2: announced in May of this year. Unfortunately that wasn't forthcoming,

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Speaker 2: So they've given us a two point eight million just

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Speaker 2: to make sure that we can achieve our aim in

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Speaker 2: a good, good time trame.

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Speaker 1: So it's not the end of the program by the

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Speaker 1: sounds of it.

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Speaker 2: No, no, no, And so is it definitely not.

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Speaker 1: It's a situation where now I guess you've got a

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Speaker 1: little more time to get all your ducks in a ry.

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Speaker 2: Yeah. I mean, I think I'm still aspiring to start

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Speaker 2: the medical program in twenty twenty five. That's an ambitious target,

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Speaker 2: but we're still going to go for it. We're going

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Speaker 2: to use the two point eight million wisely. We're going

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Speaker 2: to make sure that we get whatever the federal government

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Speaker 2: needs in place so we can provide them with that

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Speaker 2: reassurance and then from there on in and hopefully they'll

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Speaker 2: provide this YERSP places so we can go increase in numbers.

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Speaker 2: I think one of the things that we were concerned

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Speaker 2: about is we think we need sixty eighty perhaps one

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Speaker 2: hundred places over the coming period, and I think they

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Speaker 2: were only offering twenty. So I think this gives us

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Speaker 2: oportunity to us for more, get a stronger locally based

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Speaker 2: curriculum in place, to get all the infrastructure in place

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Speaker 2: and really put those foundations into I think they've given

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Speaker 2: us a good foundation to really come bring the program

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Speaker 2: to into fruition.

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Speaker 3: Professor. I love your optimism.

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Speaker 1: I love the fact that you still want to get

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Speaker 1: going by twenty twenty five. But with only two point

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Speaker 1: eight million, is it going to be a subpar program?

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Speaker 2: Absolutely not, No, no, no, definitely not. I mean the

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Speaker 2: two point eight million is about developing the curriculums of

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Speaker 2: doing that exploratory work, doing that development work. It's not

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Speaker 2: about actually running the program. So you'd need far more

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Speaker 2: than two point eight min to run the prom So

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Speaker 2: now that it will definitely not be a subpart program.

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Speaker 2: It will be the territory's finest medical program. I can

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Speaker 2: reassure you of that. We will produce the best graduates.

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Speaker 2: I think we have excellent graduates in the whole health field. Again,

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Speaker 2: you would talk about nurses now our health and we'll

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Speaker 2: do exactly the same new medicine. We just need that

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Speaker 2: foundation runy just to sort of help us on our way.

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Speaker 1: Why didn't the federal government come to the party with

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Speaker 1: this funding that CDU was seeking, You know, what were

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Speaker 1: their reasons behind it? Because I guess after the discussions

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Speaker 1: that we've been having this morning, it seems like a

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Speaker 1: no brainer that we need to be growing our own.

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Speaker 2: I'm with you on that, Katie. That's probably a question

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Speaker 2: for the for the federal government, because I'm right behind you.

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Speaker 2: The territory needs well documented, the workforce needs are well documented,

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Speaker 2: and we just have to perhaps make that argument even stronger.

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Speaker 2: I don't know whether they didn't recognize it, or whether

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Speaker 2: I thought this was a good way of sort of

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Speaker 2: sparking that admission and really sort of going for which.

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Speaker 1: Regions were successful and you know, did the Commonwealth give

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Speaker 1: the reasons why they were able to get that funding

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Speaker 1: and we weren't.

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Speaker 2: No, So I think every jurisdiction other than the MT

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Speaker 2: and the Act was successful.

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Speaker 3: Really correct. That is a bit disappointing to hear, isn't it.

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Speaker 2: That's yes, that's one way I've saying it. But as

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Speaker 2: I said, we did get this two point eight million,

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Speaker 2: which I think we'll go some way to sort of

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Speaker 2: preparedness for the future.

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Speaker 1: All right, So what are the next steps from your perspective?

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Speaker 1: Like I said, you still sound as though you still

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Speaker 1: sound as though it's it's full you know, full forging ahead.

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Speaker 3: You want this to happen. What are the next steps?

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Speaker 2: Yep. So we're meeting with the commore up hopefully sometime

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Speaker 2: next week. We'll find out what to support their offering

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Speaker 2: and what it's got to be used for and how

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Speaker 2: we can develop it further. We've got a medical Advisory

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Speaker 2: Board with all the key players across the territory and

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Speaker 2: we'll just work it from there. Obviously it's coming up

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Speaker 2: to Christmas, so we'll do as much work as we

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Speaker 2: can this side of Christmas and then not to really

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Speaker 2: put the jets on in the new year.

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Speaker 1: Well, see to you, Health pro Vice Chancellor Professor Dominic

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Speaker 1: Upton always appreciate your time. Thank you very much for

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Speaker 1: having a chat with me this morning.