Name - Cherri Qizhang Liu
Year - Med V
Location - Kempsey, NSW
Looking back
Despite having lived literally around the world, I’d still consider myself a ‘city girl’. When I opened my email to find that I’d be completing my 4-week rural placement in Kempsey for general medicine, admittedly I felt nervous about sacrificing many of Sydney’s conveniences and luxuries. However, my concerns were soon alleviated, as rural experience was unparalleled in diversity, the local community welcoming. Furthermore, the rural clinical school made every attempt to better our stay, providing free fully-furnished housing that even came with a TV! Here, I share a snapshot of my time in Kempsey.
The Kempsey Region
With a population of approximately 14,000, the Kempsey town sits peacefully within the Mid North Coast region, lying about half way between Sydney and Brisbane. The Macleay River divides the town into East and West sections. West Kempsey is where you will find a wide selection of supermarkets and department stores, including Coles, Woolworths, IGA, and Big W. There is also an Anytime Fitness for those gym junkies. Driving is essential to navigate the town (and for weekend getaways) as public transport is sparse. Food wise, there were many local cafes, an award-winning Thai restaurant, and family restaurants serving amazing country style fried chicken. Fancier dining opportunities were limited, but the RSL overlooking the Macleay river offered affordable dining with a quiet view, which we frequented weekly for their Tuesday specials.
Kempsey Local District Hospital
The Kempsey Hospital itself was amazing… Having undergone recent refurbishment, it fit the aesthetics for a modern private hospital. It housed an ED, ICU, HDU, rehabilitation unit, and a large general medical ward. There was also a student common room that looks far more aged, but fully equipped with textbooks, couches, and computers with internet access. The staff room in the medical ward provided a good alternative location for studying, with wifi access through Eduroam.
A Typical Clinical Day
Medical ward rounds typically started at 8:00am and this is where most of the bedside teaching occur. Even though we lived 5 minutes’ walk away, we drove every morning to squeeze in an extra 4 minutes of snooze. There were two medical teams, each led by a local GP, who were super friendly and supportive towards our learning needs. I was very impressed not only by their breadth of medical knowledge, but also their proficiency in identifying and utilising the right services to manage patients’ complex social issues, including financial and physical barriers to accessing medical services. The most common conditions we encountered included diabetes, hepatic and renal disease, and ischemic heart disease. It was devastating to see the end-stage presentations for these conditions, and emphasises the need for primary prevention and health promotion in rural/remote areas.Depending on the volume of inpatients, we finished anytime between 10:30am to mid-day. My afternoons were mostly dedicated to conducting histories/examinations on my own, where I saw a lot of signs like palmar erythema and pulsatile liver that I’d almost never see in metropolitan Sydney. I also clerked new admissions in ED and reported my assessments to the registrars. Throughout the day, there were ample opportunities to practice procedural skills, mostly in phlebotomy, cannulation, and VBGs. Although there were no structured tutorials – an option was to drive to the nearby clinical schools in Port Macquarie or Coffs Harbour.
Activities
During the week, there were many ways to socialise and mingle with the local community. While none of us were game enough to make 5:30am jogs, some did follow Dr Lee (the local GP and student coordinator who’s been in Kempsey for over 20 years!) to his weekly band and choir practices.We saved our weekends for adventures. We made road trips to Port Macquarie (45 minutes south), and Coffs Harbour (1 hour north), which offered hiking trails, beaches, amazing dining, and fantastic photo opportunities for my Instagram account. We often headed east from Kempsey to sunbathe in breathtaking beaches along Hathead, and to surf in mini sand dunes in the Crescent Head camping grounds. There were also countless vineyards scattered around Kempsey for those wine lovers. For those without a wine palate, the Bago Winery and Maze is perfect for enjoying the country landscape and getting lost in a beautiful labyrinth of greenery.
Overall, my clinical placement in Kempsey was rewarding and enjoyable. I found doing general medicine there hugely benefitted my learning and Biomed preparation for 5th year, as I was exposed a wide range of common conditions. I also highly recommend this placement to anyone interested in general practice, and to those new to the rural experience as Kempsey is relatively developed and living is quite convenient
Kempsey (map)