Your personal safety on placement

Your safety on placement, including when you are travelling to and from your placement, is one of UQ’s highest priorities. However, you also have a responsibility to prioritise your own personal safety.

Below are some tips for staying safe on placement – we recommend you review these regularly. Remember, safety includes both physical as well as psychosocial safety.

General placement safety information

Complete the HaBS Placement Safety Modules and review them again prior to each placement block. You can access the content of these modules at any time, even if you have completed them previously.

Travelling to and from placement

Do you have a communication plan in place? Does someone know where you are and when to expect your return? Review the Queensland Police Adult Safety website. This website provides situational safety strategies for various settings including public transport, workplaces and private vehicles.
Use these strategies as a starting point for conducting an informal risk assessment for yourself and develop a personal safety plan. A personal safety plan is comprised of safety strategies chosen by you to suit your lifestyle and abilities. When formulating your personal safety plan, consider placement scenarios such as transport to and from your placement and your accommodation arrangements if you are living away from your usual place of residence while on placement.
Are you driving to a placement outside Brisbane? Driving in rural Australia is challenging and brings with it additional risks. Review the Queensland Government regional driving webpage for recommended precautions if you are driving on country roads for your placement. Remember that some remote locations have limited mobile phone coverage. You should check this prior to commencing your journey and ensure you notify people of your travel plans.
Are you being asked by your placement provider to drive your own vehicle or a host's vehicle while on placement? You should check with your UQ Placement Coordinator for further advice as UQ has firm guidelines in relation to this type of activity.
If you need to travel within Australia or internationally for your placement, ensure that you understand your obligations as a student and have followed the relevant travel procedures outlined on your discipline’s Prepare for Placement webpage.
Do you commute to and from placement in uniform? A uniform identifies you as a professional-in-training within the workplace which is a positive. However, outside in the wider community it can make you vulnerable to undesirable attention. By covering up your uniform or changing into other clothes when travelling to and from placement it prevents you being identified as a certain profession and being approached by individuals who may have negative associations with healthcare professionals, or who may be looking to prey on the empathy of your profession for other reasons. We also recommend that you remove your name badge when in public. Wearing a name badge can increase risk in the form of someone who pretends to already know you, taking advantage of your trust.

Incidents and hazards on placement

Your personal safety includes both physical as well as psychosocial safety.
UQ is committed to ensuring that the work and study environment for all employees, students and volunteers is safe, respectful and free from all forms of sexual violence, assault and misconduct. Refer to the UQ Respect page for information on:
- support and information for survivors of sexual assault and misconduct
- options for reporting sexual assault and misconduct if you choose to
- information about consent, and UQ's policies and procedures

The Sexual Misconduct Support Unit (SMSU) is a safe and supportive place for the UQ community to receive free, confidential guidance and support around sexual assault and sexual harassment. Even if you choose not to formally report an incident involving sexual assault or sexual harassment, you can still access support from the Sexual Misconduct Support Unit. UQ will ensure that your privacy is protected when you discuss an incident.

Incidents of a non-sexual nature that occur while on placement should be reported both to the placement host and to UQ. Incidents should be reported as soon after an incident as possible, when you are in a safe environment. This ensures the incident details are fresh in your mind and you can provide sufficient detail to enable an effective investigation and resolution. Your UQ contact for these incidents is your Placement Coordinator or Course Coordinator. If you are not able to contact your Placement Coordinator to report an incident, you can also report it to hmbs.placements@uq.edu.au and we will pass this on to your School. UQ will ensure that your privacy is protected when you report an incident.
If undertaking a rural or regional placement you should also consider potential hazards that are specific to the location. This includes increased risk of bushfires during the Spring and Summer months (September to March). We recommend you review this UQ safety alert related to bushfire risk. You should also carry a record of local emergency numbers and keep up to date with local environmental warnings via social media or government website alerts. Ensure you have adequate supplies in reserve such as food, water, personal items and medications for situations where you may be forced to remain onsite longer than intended.

Provide safety feedback

No induction at your placement location? Work conditions unsafe? Have you been involved in an incident?

Our staff work tirelessly with our placement partners to ensure your safety and we are keen to make sure your experiences are positive and safe. Please share any safety concerns you may have with your UQ Placement Coordinator/Course Coordinator. It's important that you let us know as soon as you think there is a problem so it can be addressed and resolved quickly. UQ will ensure that your privacy is protected when you report any concerns.

Student support

In the first instance you should contact your UQ Placement Coordinator or Course Coordinator for assistance with your placements. However, if this is not possible or preferred, there are other options available to students seeking support.

Emergency Support	Police, Fire, Ambulance - Phone 000 or Triple Zero UQ Security - Phone 07 3365 3333 Keeping safe on campus
UQ Student Support Services	Counselling, crisis support, financial hardship assistance, accommodation, international student support, Allianz Care.
Student counselling services	UQ offers a range of different counselling sessions to suit your needs including one-on-one appointments, group sessions and online support. If you need assistance outside normal business hours, please call our UQ Counselling and Crisis Line: 1300 851 998 You may also wish to access UQ with You For all UQ students, families and broader UQ community within Australia 6 complimentary sessions F2F and Zoom
Sexual Misconduct Support Unit	The University of Queensland's Sexual Misconduct Support Unit is a safe and supportive place for the UQ community to receive guidance around sexual assault and misconduct. 8.00am - 5.00pm Monday to Friday - Phone: 1300 851 998 After hours - Phone 1800 RESPECT (1800 737 07328)
First responder network	The First Responder Network offers a safe and supportive environment for survivors of sexual assault and sexual harassment so that you can receive information on the support services that are available to you. Note: The First Responder Network is not an emergency response or counselling service
UQ Healthcare	Provides a range of health services including wellness support
UQ Mental Health Champion	Mental Health Champions are trained UQ staff members who can provide support and referral information about mental health and wellbeing.
Contact your School	School of Dentistry School of Health and Rehabilitation Sciences School of Human Movement and Nutrition Sciences School of Nursing, Midwifery and Social Work School of Pharmacy School of Psychology
UQ Advocate Complaints and Appeals	UQ is committed to developing and maintaining an inclusive and harmonious environment where all members of the UQ Community feel welcome. We encourage genuine complaints made in good faith and we are committed to providing an effective and transparent complaints management system. If you wish to submit an anonymous complaint, you can do so via this form.

Contact us

Student enquiries
Placement Ready team
hmbs.placementready@uq.edu.au

Phone
07 3346 0903 Monday - Friday 8:30am - 4:30pm

Visit us
Room 539A, Level 5,
Human Movement Studies Building (26B)

Individual student consultations are available on:

Mondays - Thursdays 11am - 2pm.

Online Chat

The HMBS Placement Ready team are available for online chat Monday to Thursday afternoon from 1pm to 3pm.

You can find the chat function on the Prepare for your placement homepage.

NEW Live Video Chat

Monday - Friday 8:30am - 4:30pm. Click HERE to access live video chat site with our team or scan the QR Code below to connect directly with our team: