Paediatrics calling for junior doctor

Dr Eliza Kurth has been accepted on to the paediatric training program after spending her internship and junior house officer year training at Townsville University Hospital.

Dr Kurth will start Basic Paediatric Training in Darwin in 2023 with the Royal Australasian College of Physicians on the Townsville University Hospital and The Royal Darwin Hospital rotation. She’s thrilled to be following her dream specialty.

“I love the medicine, the bright little patients I get to care for, and the unique opportunity you have as a clinician to make a lasting impact on a child’s life,” the 2020 James Cook University graduate says.

“I was originally drawn to a career in medicine due to its emphasis on human connection and the provision of care to those more vulnerable than yourself.”

Dr Kurth has loved the training experience at TUH, and will return as a registrar in 2024. “I decided to stay local as I felt very connected to the local hospitals and communities that supported my medical training to date,” she says.

“By training in a regional hospital, I feel that I was very well supported, had access to quality teaching, close consultant supervision, research opportunities and a tight-knit network of colleagues/friends that have shaped me as a junior doctor.”

She says growing up in the small town in North Queensland of Kuranda was instrumental in her desire to pursue a career in regional and rural medicine. “In my spare time, I love to travel back home to go hiking, chase waterfalls and spend time with family,” she says.

She returned to JCU to share her experiences with first-year students in one of the ‘Meet the Graduates’ sessions held for pre-clinical students. Junior doctors reflect on their time at medical school, share tips and tricks, and talk about placement experiences and the relevance of med modules in their day-to-day work.

JCU students do at least 20 weeks of rural and remote placements during their six-year degree, which makes them work-ready from the start of internship. In sixth year, they become a valuable part of the medical workforce as student interns.  

“Hands down my favourite placement was my final-year rural internship at the Weipa Hospital,” Dr Kurth says. “This placement was perhaps the most pivotal in my transition from a medical student to a junior doctor.

“I was independently reviewing patients in outpatient settings, helping manage patients in the emergency department and attending lots of outreach clinics in neighbouring communities (Napranum/Mapoon). I made some of my closest friends on that placement, and we spent many weekends adventuring in a 4WD, camping, fishing and learning about the local culture.

“JCU provided me with all the tools and experiences required to navigate my first few years as a junior doctor. I’m incredibly grateful for my training so far, the invaluable lessons instilled in me, and the growing development of regional and rural medicine that I have an opportunity to take part in.”

NQRTH connects medical students, intern and junior doctors with a network of opportunities and resources designed to create a supportive and clear path to specialist (including general practice) training, and beyond, in our regions. Our network works together to strengthen medical specialist training with the view to build a health workforce prepared to meet the health needs of our regional and rural communities in Cairns, Central West, Mackay, North West, Torres and Cape, and Townsville. NQRTH is facilitated by James Cook University, who partner with hospital and health services and training providers to create a connected career pathway beginning at the medical undergraduate level right through to fellowship.