THERE’S no doubt that working in the bush is unique and presents its own set of challenges.
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Regardless of your industry, settling into a new community can be daunting, and at times, overwhelming.
But, for three of Gunnedah’s newest faces, Dr Matthew Chan, Dr Nicole Bartos and Dr Mike Hodges (pictured), their arrival signals a shining beacon of fresh hope for the community.
These three doctors will go some of the way to curing what many in the community have labelled a “doctor shortage” in Gunnedah.
Dr Hodges was the first arrival of the new year, beginning work at Mackeller Care Rural Health Centre on February 5, followed by the two young general practitioner (GP) registrars who began their next step of training at the Barber Street Medical Centre on February 9.
Local GP Dr Robert Parsons said the arrival of the two registrars could be the start of more young doctors choosing Gunnedah as their next community workplace.
When arriving in a new town the first question posed by most is what sort of community does Gunnedah have?
The answer: a strong one.
A community that will embrace these new doctors as it has all of those that have recently arrived and called Gunnedah home.
Recruitment of skills is paramount for the survival of any regional town and while saying having a strong community sounds like a simple answer to a complex problem it goes a lot further than you think.
A strong community can action plans to create change, like we have seen in recent months with the purchase of the Rural Health Centre by Mackeller Care, or the various developments we have seen in the town’s childcare facilities.
It can foster a diversity in trade like we are seeing in the local agriculture industry, which continues to strengthen not only its traditional roots like stock and cotton, but also grow new products like the booming citrus market around the area.
Sure a strong community spirit won’t create more doctors or provide an immediate fix to current medical issues, but creating a community atmosphere that will entice more professionals to choose to work in Gunnedah is something we can all do to help. Gunnedah is a bustling town and if we continue to grow and foster that community spirit it will be what sets us apart from the others.
Billy Jupp
Billy is a Senior Livestock Journalist for the Queensland Country Life based in Toowoomba. He has worked for a variety of different ACM mastheads during the past five years including the Namoi Valley Independent, Northern Daily Leader and The Land.
Billy is a Senior Livestock Journalist for the Queensland Country Life based in Toowoomba. He has worked for a variety of different ACM mastheads during the past five years including the Namoi Valley Independent, Northern Daily Leader and The Land.
