Name: Taara Hamer
Year Level: 1st Year
University: University of Wollongong
Location: Griffith, NSW
Griffith is far from your average rural town. A cultural melting pot, boasting what could possibly be the best bakery I have ever been too (Bertoldos), it was honestly the most unique and fulfilling balance of medical and extra-curricular experiences.
Spending two weeks in this lovely town, by day I was able to work with Dr. Marion Reeves at ‘Your Health’ and Dr. Yalini Thevashanger at the Griffith Aboriginal Medical Service, sitting in on patient consultations and even trying my hand at using the sphygmomanometers and otoscopes. I was also able to follow the progress of the GP patients through to their specialist appointments, in either maternity or theatre, even having the opportunity to scrub in at one point! Considering I was fresh into my medical degree, this was pretty amazing! Also, having not come from a rural background, it was then quite strange (and cool) to run into patients that you had seen that morning at the shops.
By night, I traversed the main streets, trying every Italian restaurant possible, and watching the sunsets at the Hermit Cave look out. Griffith’s landscape is incredibly diverse, going from bustling town centres to orange and cotton farms. During my free time, I would visit these farms (even earning free hot bread from some Italian Nonnas!), check out the Pioneer Park Museum or hike along the lookouts.
Completing a stint in a rural area, especially one like Griffith, is probably one of the best things you can do in your medical career. Being one of the few medical professionals around, you are able and welcomed to get your ‘hands dirty’ and put into practice the theory you learn in University. You also really appreciate just how much of an impact rural GPs have on their community.
I went into this placement a nervous and over-excited first year, and I came out of it, still excited, but with a renewed sense of confidence that, even though I had a long way to go to become a good Doctor, I was able to contribute to the patient’s welfare and learn some new skills along the way.
Griffith (map)
