Student Placement Agreements (SPA)

To access clinical placement opportunities within SLHD, it is a requirement that education providers have an active 'Student Placement Agreement' between themselves and SLHD.

This Agreement is designed to govern the arrangements and processes required for University and non-secondary school VET organisations to gain access to clinical placements in NSW publically owned health facilities. Part of the document covers such items as confirming the education provider's indemnity insurance and also provides for the provision to ensure that all students meet the verification requirements as per NSW Health policy directives.  

To add a new discipline to the current 'Student Placement Agreement' (SPA) a full description of the course, the objectives required by the student to meet whilst on placement and the most appropriate discipline the student should be assigned to, is to be provided by email to the SLHD Clinical Placement Unit at slhd-cpu@health.nsw.gov.au. If it is agreed by the respective Discipline Director/Manager that they are able to assist in placing the student, an 'Operational Schedule (Schedule 1)' will be issued to include the new discipline. Upon the review of the SPA prior to expiry, it will be decided at that point by respective stakeholders, if this discipline is to be included in any new agreement; it is not an automatic process that disciplines in current SPAs are included in future SPAs as service needs and available teaching resources may change.

When an 'Operational Schedule (Schedule 1)' is issued to include a new discipline, please do not add disciplines to this document unless they have been mutually agreed to by both parties.

Please note that NSW Health does not enter into student placement agreements with education providers outside of Australia. The only way that international students can gain access to NSW Health facilities, is to be enrolled in an Australian University that has a student placement agreement with a local health district, to accommodate placement requests.