00:00Every year, Canterbury Cathedral sees thousands of students graduate,
00:04but there's something quite special about this particular ceremony.
00:08The students at the Kent and Medway Medical School will be the first group to graduate
00:12since the joint partnership between the University of Kent and Canterbury Christchurch University
00:17began back in 2020. In September 2020, Kent and Medway Medical School officially opened,
00:25making it the only medical school in the UK to open during a global pandemic.
00:30For many students, this unique opportunity was something that drew them to study here in Kent.
00:36Yeah, well, for me, it was very much the selling point of coming to this medical school. They
00:40sold it as having the opportunity to be a part of shaping the school and what it would become.
00:46And that was very much why I wanted to come here. I wanted to be a part of the school and the process
00:52and what the training would be like to help mould it for the future years. And that is what it has
00:57felt like throughout my time here. Today, there are over 500 students across the five years studying
01:03to become future healthcare workers here in the county, aiming to address what the school are
01:08calling a chronic shortage of doctors within the region. Why are we here in Kent and Medway is well
01:16grounded in the experience of lots of other countries and lots of other healthcare systems,
01:20where we know that medical students and medical graduates tend to stay closer to
01:24their own medical school. And so by feeding that workforce pipeline in Kent and Medway,
01:30we really hope that we'll make a difference to the medical workforce here in the county.
01:34And for many students, they look forward to joining the workforce in an area they've already taken on
01:39placements.
01:41Yeah, I think it's really good to be on the other side of things and be the doctor now.
01:46So I'm part of East Kent Hospitals Trust, which includes Ashford, Margate and Kent to Canterbury.
01:52My placements are mostly going to be between Kent to Canterbury and William Harvey. So my first
01:57placement is only five minutes away from where I live, which is excellent. And then I'll be doing
02:02some commuting to William Harvey. But yeah, it's been really good. It's been quite good to see very
02:07familiar faces because I've done placements there before as well. So a lot of support. So yeah, it's been good.
02:13It's clear to see that the students have not only studied locally, but are also joining the local
02:19workforces as well. Despite only being five years old, the Kent and Medway Medical School
02:26is offering opportunities to those who may have not even considered a profession in healthcare
02:30initially. Etelie Reynolds for KMTV in Canterbury.
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