Western Health Alliance

New Footscray Hospital connected to VU campus

800+ student placements annually

High graduate employment rates

Victoria University’s largest partnership in the health sector is with the major healthcare provider in Melbourne’s west, Western Health.

Victoria University (VU) and Western Health share a longstanding partnership focused on improving health outcomes, advancing research and developing the future health workforce for Melbourne's west. Together, we are creating new opportunities for students, staff, researchers, and the community through innovative education, industry-engaged training, needs-focused employment pathways, and collaborative research.

About our alliance

The VU and Western Health alliance leverages our joint expertise in health, research and education to benefit the west of Melbourne. The partnership provides opportunities for students, staff and the community in areas such as:

Student placements, where VU students are able to work closely and learn first-hand from leading Western Health professionals. Importantly, they have access to workplace opportunities that enhance their knowledge and employability in one of the fastest growing industries in the country.
Graduate employment, from earn-while-you learn casual roles to graduate positions in Western Health sites across the west.
Research projects, programs and PhD pathways, where VU students and staff collaborate with Western Health on groundbreaking health research linked to real-life outcomes for local patients.
Shared health precincts, including Sunshine and now Footscray, with the opening of the New Footscray Hospital connected to the VU Footscray Park campus. The site also includes the $63m VU Research Building which will focus on advancing work in preventative disease and healthy ageing, and a plan to increase community participation in clinical trials by up to 50%.

Building a world-class health and education precinct

Western Health’s new Footscray Hospital, connected to VU’s Footscray Park campus, has transformed Melbourne’s inner west into a leading health and education precinct. Located on the hospital grounds is also VU’s latest research facility, the VU Research Building, allowing researchers to work directly with Western Health clinicians, allied health

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United Nations Sustainable Development Goals

This partnership addresses the following United Nations Sustainable Development Goals.

Goal 3: Good health & well-being
Goal 8: Decent work & economic growth.

Benefits for students & courses

Western Health is VU’s largest industry training partner for Nursing and Midwifery work-integrated learning, providing wide-ranging placement experiences and graduate employment pathways. Students studying Social Work, Physiotherapy, Psychology, Speech Pathology and Nutrition and Dietetics at VU also connect with Western Health via placements, projects and research opportunities.

There are also growing opportunities in non-clinical training and career pathways for VU students at Western Health, from the Bachelor of IT (Professional) paid placement programs to student placements in Law, Business, Engineering and various TAFE disciplines.

Each year, over 800 VU students complete placements at Western Health.

Educating our future healthcare workforce

We have worked together with Western Health to provide training opportunities including placements for our students, to develop industry-enhanced courses, and setting our students up for success in their career journeys.

Browse health courses

Research & projects

Our joint research projects with Western Health are a core element of the alliance. This includes research collaborations that begin during undergraduate studies, progress through Higher Degree Research, and into significant interdisciplinary projects, all with a focus on improving healthcare outcomes.

Research takes place across a number of key Western Health and Victoria University sites, including the VU Research Building at the new Footscray Hospital, and the Western Centre for Health Research and Education (WCHRE).

The VU Research Building

The VU Research Building, located on the grounds of the new Footscray Hospital and connected to the VU Footscray Park campus, is the university’s $63 million research facility which will allow researchers to work directly with Western Health clinicians, allied health professionals and patients, and local community members, to advance work in preventative disease and healthy ageing.

The Western Centre for Health Research and Education (WCHRE)

The Western Centre for Health Research and Education (WCHRE) is an innovative and sustainable research, teaching and training and precinct based at the Western Health Sunshine site.

VU staff and students located within Western CHRE are primarily from research aligned to the Institute for Health & Sport.

Western CHRE also incorporates the Australian Institute for Musculoskeletal Science (AIMSS).

Working together, Western Health and Victoria University researchers produce practical research that supports the needs of the communities they serve. Understanding the local community informs more targeted research with a greater impact.

–Western Health Research Program Director, Bill Karanatsios

Joint VU and Western Health research projects conducted by the Institute for Health & Sport are within the following areas: