A new perspective regarding the impact of rural disadvantage on accessing services: Hearing the Australian and Irish social work student voice

This participatory research project, a co-operative inquiry, was led by seven social work students whilst on placement. They investigated the research question: How do rural advantage and disadvantage impact access to services from an Australian and Irish social work student perspective? Students were either on placement in Australia (n = 6, fully online placement) or in Ireland (n = 1, on-site practice placement with an online research component). The seven students, supported by seven academics, met weekly online to conduct in-depth conversations, share knowledge and their own observations, and connect these with the available literature regarding rural advantage and disadvantage. Grounded by a social determinants of health framework, the purpose of the inquiry was to highlight issues that affect isolated communities, their access to services, and explore these issues across two cultural and geographical contexts. The key themes that emerged included: i) the complexities of access to rural services; ii) the advantages and disadvantages of rural connectedness; and iii) the impact of these advantages/disadvantages on rural social work practitioners. These findings are significant for educators and rural practitioners, adding to the social work knowledge-base a unique student perspective of the issues that affect isolated communities and their access to health and social work services.