2027 Intake Medical Campaign Webinar Series
The 2027 Medical Campaign Webinar Series is designed specifically for medical students and junior doctors preparing to apply for Queensland Health’s Intern and RMO and Registrar recruitment campaigns.
Across multiple live sessions, you’ll hear straight from Queensland Health recruitment teams, experienced clinicians, and current trainees, with plenty of opportunity to ask questions and build your confidence before you apply.
A network of medical training opportunities
We connect medical students, interns and junior doctors with resources and opportunities to prepare for specialist training and beyond, creating stronger health outcomes in our region.
Dr Tadiwa Mashavave, Junior Doctor, Mackay Base Hospital
“It was during my time at JCU that I decided I wanted to end up somewhere rural or regional and I thought I would be able to gain a lot of hands-on skills in my junior years at a regional hospital like Mackay Base Hospital. It’s been great working with other doctors who are as passionate about rural health and the people it serves.”
Dr Hannah Bennett, Rural Generalist and Pain Specialist, Townsville University Hospital
"As a consultant in Pain Medicine, I have excellent work-life balance. Townsville is a great place to raise a family and there's so much on your doorstep here. It's just an easy life.” Read More
Dr Anthony Brazzale, Cardiologist, Cairns and Hinterland Hospital and Health Service
“We have advanced trainees who come from Brisbane and want to come back here now as consultants. They tell us this is one of the best training centres in Australia. The opportunities you get up here, you’ll get nowhere else.” Read MoreKeep up to date with our latest news & events!
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13 April 2026
Summer Bursary Launches JCU Student into Tropical Health Research
As her second year of medicine drew to a close, James Cook University student Jasmeen Kaur took on an additional challenge—one that would expand her research skills and deepen her understanding of immunity and virus response in the tropics. Jasmeen was eager to pursue research, driven by a personal desire to improve health outcomes in rural and marginalised communities. She successfully applied for a North Queensland Regional Training Hubs (NQRTH) MBBS Summer Research Bursary Program—an annual NQRTH initiative that offers JCU medical students exposure to hands-on research over the summer break. The program provides financial support for students to undertake four to six weeks of research alongside experienced clinicians and researchers. “I have always been drawn to research because of its potential to contribute to significant, large-scale impact. However, I was unsure how to get involved and felt that, as a second-year student, I lacked the theoretical knowledge and experience to contribute meaningfully,” she says. “The Summer Research Bursary stood out as an opportunity to explore research in a supportive and low-pressure environment. I was particularly interested in gaining exposure to laboratory-based research, as I wanted to better understand how the scientific and physiological principles we learn in medical school are applied and validated in a laboratory setting. “This experience allowed me to explore that side of medicine, which I found both challenging and rewarding. This research project followed my rural clinical placement, where I was exposed to a wide range of infectious disease cases and gained insight into the realities of healthcare delivery in regional settings, particularly at Innisfail Hospital. “Observing challenges such as limited staffing, infrastructure constraints, and barriers to access reinforced my interest in contributing to research in the local Cairns community.”
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31 March 2026
A research journey from Sri Lanka to North Queensland
For Dr Chanika Alahakoon, pursuing a career in research and teaching was always about making a broader impact in medicine. Her journey from her home country to North Queensland is a powerful example of dedication, resilience, and purpose despite huge challenges. Originally from Sri Lanka, Dr Alahakoon trained as a medical doctor before taking on a role as a Lecturer in Physiology, teaching medical students in Sri Lanka while continuing her work in medicine. “In Sri Lanka, it is a requirement to have a PhD to progress through the academic ranks to Associate Professor or Professor,” she explains. “Rather than becoming a practising clinician, I always felt I could contribute more by teaching medical students and conducting research in medicine.” Her opportunity to pursue her PhD came about in 2019 after she met with Professor Jonathan Golledge, a leading vascular researcher based at James Cook University and Townsville University Hospital. Dr Alahakoon’s husband was a trainee under Prof Golledge at that time. “As a clinician, I always wanted to do a Clinical PhD, and Prof Golledge offered me the opportunity to choose between Peripheral Artery Disease (PAD) or Diabetes-related Foot Disease (DFD). As diabetes is a major problem in Sri Lanka I opted to do my studies in diabetes-related foot disease. This is how I came to work in QRCPVD (Queensland Research Centre for Peripheral Vascular Disease).” Tackling a growing health challenge As a clinician, Dr Alahakoon had always hoped to complete a clinically focused PhD. When given the option to investigate Peripheral Artery Disease (PAD) or Diabetes-related Foot Disease (DFD), she focused on a health problem affecting her home country. “Diabetes is a major problem in Sri Lanka,” she says. “Because of that, I chose to focus on diabetes-related foot disease.” Her research soon revealed the scale and seriousness of the condition in Australia. “Many people in Australia are affected by diabetes-related foot disease due to poor control of diabetes,” she explains. “They usually had polyneuropathy and PAD on top of their diabetes and make them more prone to get foot ulcers and infections. There were a significant proportion of patients undergoing repeated admissions to the hospital to manage this condition, and a significant number of patients had to undergo foot amputations to manage the condition which was a major health problem among these unique cohort of patients.” She says the prevalence of this condition is higher than some cancers such as breast cancer, yet the five-year survival for people with diabetes-related foot disease can be lower. Her research also highlighted the disproportionate impact of the condition among Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples, with about 20 per cent of the patients studied Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people, despite representing less than five per cent of the community population. Balancing research, family and a global pandemic Completing a PhD is demanding at the best of times, but Dr Alahakoon balanced her studies whilst adjusting to life in a new country and being the primary carer for her two-year-old son.Just as she settled into her new routine, the COVID-19 pandemic disrupted research activity worldwide in 2020. “All research staff and students and even some clinicians were not seeing patients in the Townsville Hospital unless it was strictly necessary and this was a big hindrance to my progress. “We were not given ethical clearance to do studies that involved contacting patients directly. We had already taken approvals to one prospective cohort study which I managed with the help of my husband who was working in the hospital as the time. The planned randomised controlled trial had to be dropped, and we focused on retrospective data analysis of hospital records as I wanted to finish my PhD on time as an international student.”
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12 March 2026
From Overseas Dream to Regional Practice
After studying medicine at JCU, Dr Abdul Kalam Rawther has begun his internship in Mackay, building his career in regional Queensland.
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12 March 2026
Putting Down Roots in the Central WestÂ
Doctors Samantha Campbell and Garry Cheng have made Longreach home, combining rural generalist practice with family life while delivering care across the Central West.
Read MoreThe NQRTH medical training network:
NQRTH is an initiative of the Australian Government's Integrated Rural Training Pipeline (IRTP) and is facilitated by James Cook University in partnership with public and private hospitals, Queensland Aboriginal and Islander Health Council (QAIHC), health services, Aboriginal Community Controlled Health Organisations (ACCHOs) and GP clinics.
Cairns Region
(07) 4226 7138
Central West Region
(07) 4764 1547
Mackay Region
(07) 4885 7122
North West Region
(07) 4764 1547
Torres and Cape Region
(07) 4226 7138
Townsville Region
(07) 4781 3424