South Western Sydney PHN is a not-for-profit health organisation dedicated to supporting general practitioners, practice nurses and other primary health providers.
Dr Nicole Hall from Wattle Grove Family Medical Practice is committed to helping women and their families during pregnancy and the first few years of the baby’s life through her work as a GP, a GP VMO at Liverpool Hospital in high-risk obstetric care, and as co-chair of the SWSPHN/SWSLHD Antenatal Shared Care Operations Group.
How long have you been a GP and how long have you been practising in Wattle Grove/ Liverpool LGA?
I received my GP Fellowship in 2015. I was an intern and resident at Bankstown and Campbelltown Hospitals, and did a significant part of my GP training here in Wattle Grove.
When/why did you decide you wanted to become a GP?
General practice was a natural career choice for me. Even during medical school I knew I would become a GP. I love the continuity of care, getting to know patients, and feeling as though you can make a big difference in their lives.
I also love the flexibility which comes with being a GP. There are so many possible career pathways, and I have been lucky enough to explore some of these as a GP Visiting Medical Officer in obstetrics at Liverpool Hospital.
What do you love most about being a GP/what part of the job gives you the most satisfaction?
I get the most job satisfaction looking after women during pregnancy, especially if they have had difficulty falling pregnant, and then looking after them during the first few years of their baby’s life. This can be a very challenging time and I love being able to help women and their families during this time. I have also been very lucky over the years to be involved with research for stillbirth which I have found very rewarding, namely being involved in the development and roll-out of the Safer Baby Bundle.
With the obesity rates in South Western Sydney climbing, I also love helping patients with weight management, and looking at the joy on their faces when they realise how much weight they have lost and how much better their blood pressure and blood parameters are.
What is the most important thing you/your practice contributes to this community?
Wattle Grove Family Medical Practice has been around for a number of years, founded by my colleague Dr John Stanford. It is a very well-respected practice and has been helping the local community for a number of years. In particular, we spend a lot of time with defence families, who often have difficulties with medical care as they move around so much.
What do you like to do in your spare time?
I have two young children, aged five and three, who keep me busy! I love gardening, cooking, and bush walking with my children and dog.
What do you love most about Wattle Grove/ Liverpool LGA?
Wattle Grove is such a beautiful area to work in. We have a beautiful patient base. The patients are genuinely thankful for the care we provide to them. Working at Liverpool Hospital has also been very rewarding, being able to help a patient population of socio-economic disadvantage. Helping these women is extremely rewarding.
What advice do you give your patients about maintaining good health?
Good health has many facets to it. This includes physical health, which can be obtained by regular exercise, but also participating in activities which people enjoy. There is also the mental health aspect, and it is so important to focus on the things in your life you appreciate – spending time with friends, spending time in the outdoors. It is also important to check in with your GP if you ever feel as though your health is not as good as it could be. COVID-19 has been a very challenging time for people, and I still feel as though we are seeing the ramifications of this.
This article appeared in Practice Pulse on Wednesday, 7 December 2022. If you are a GP, practice nurse or practice manager in South Western Sydney and do not get the weekly Practice Pulse email, speak to your Practice Support Officer.
21 November 2022
Practice nurse Kathy Davey has worked in the Macarthur area of South Western Sydney for more than 40 years as a nurse across a number of roles in practice and primary care. Read more about Kathy’s role in her practice, Camden Central Family Practice, and why she enjoys the work she does.
How long have you been a practice nurse and how long have you been working in South Western Sydney?
I have been working in the Macarthur area for the past 41 years. I grew up in Campbelltown, I left home at 17 and started a live-in nurses training course at Concord Repatriation Hospital.
Why did you decide to pursue a career in nursing/primary care?
I started working at Camden Hospital in 1981, before the new Campbelltown Hospital was built. I have been consistently registered with AHPRA for 41 years.
Over the years I have worked in the operating theatre and surgical and medical nursing wards in the public and private system, and recently (12 years) in private practice. I became a practice nurse to get some work/life balance.
What do you love about nursing and being a practice nurse? What is the biggest challenge of the role?
Working with people is my passion and helping people improve their health is very rewarding. I have many patients who I regard as friends. This makes my job very easy. Time is always the enemy but I always try to fulfil my workload with the best care I can give.
How do you help educate your patients about maintaining good health?
Encouraging healthy eating and exercise, and maintaining regular medication compliance are part of my day-to-day duties, as well as dressing wounds and assisting the doctor with surgical procedures, which I enjoy.
Tell me about your ideal workday!
A good workday would be caring for some of my most delightful patients and making a difference in their lives.
What do you like to do in your spare time?
My hobbies are sewing and also caring for my two beautiful granddaughters.
31 October 2022
Dr Karyn Ashley loves feeling like she’s making a difference and working in a team which supports each other. Dr Ashley, from Southern Medical Centre at Moss Vale, is also a South Western Sydney HealthPathways Senior Clinical Editor and says she hopes the work they do at HealthPathways helps local GPs navigate our medical system.
How long have you been a GP and how long have you been practising in Moss Vale/the Southern Highlands?
I finished my GP fellowship at the end of 2018 having done my training in Sydney and started working at Southern Medical Centre in Moss Vale in early 2019.
When/why did you decide you wanted to become a GP?
I knew throughout medical school my path would lead me toward being a GP. My only exposure to medicine had been through my own local GP while growing up in Armidale. Once I had seen the hospital system, I decided early on that the somewhat cutthroat nature of many specialities wasn’t for me. I signed up for GP training as an intern knowing the flexibility of training and long-term job prospects was ideal for me. I also knew I was more interested in general medicine than focusing on only a small aspect of medicine.
What do you love most about being a GP/what part of the job gives you the most satisfaction?
I love feeling like what I do is making a difference. Even in the smallest of ways. It might just be reassuring a new mother her baby’s skin rash is completely benign or dealing with the complexities of cognitively impaired patients living on their own with no family support to call on. What we do as a GP really matters. Specifically, I really enjoy antenatal care and paediatrics.
I am also very fortunate to work in a practice where we all support each other. We are all on the same page with our clinical practice, and we are aware of each other’s strengths and weaknesses. I will often run cases past my colleagues as we all have different experiences or we may refer in-house to someone with more interest in that area, like antenatal care or skin excisions. We are also a teaching practice and always have several registrars and a medical student. This is a really important way to keep up-to-date as well as to give back to the next wave of GPs coming through.
What is the most important thing you/your practice contributes to this community?
The practice I am in was established by the practice principal’s father in 1964 and it has provided a high standard of medicine since then. We have patients coming in who were delivered as babies by the founding GP, with their babies being delivered by his son who took over the practice. Their children are now coming in pregnant themselves. It’s a great example of cross generational care.
Our practice is also very committed to looking after residents in the many nursing homes across the Southern Highlands. We try to ensure our registrars all gain experience in this area as, although it is not glamourous and in fact can be exhausting and frustrating, it is one of the most important places we can contribute to our community.
We also do a lot of drug and alcohol work which can be very complex but rewarding, and have a very strong diabetes and osteoporosis program.
There is a lot of media currently about the potential downfall of general practice due to poor federal funding and years of GP small businesses taking the financial hit to continue to provide high quality services. There also seems to be poor public and government awareness of what we actually do in general practice. The overall thought is it is a triage and referral service only.
We all know funding general practice is the most cost-effective way of keeping the population healthy and out of hospital. Despite this, government policies continue to miss the mark. At Southern Medical Centre we continue to strive to provide great care for those legitimately unable to afford it, while educating the remainder of our population about the need to contribute to their healthcare so we can continue to service our community.
What do you like to do in your spare time?
My two primary school aged kids and husband keep me busy outside of work! But I am also lucky to be able to play trumpet in our local symphony orchestra and big band. I took up boxing just before COVID which I have found extremely enjoyable (therapeutic!) and have started crocheting small soft toys this year (which my children tend to steal prior to them making into my clinic office!).
Is there anything else you’d like to let your fellow primary carers know about you?
I also work for South Western Sydney HealthPathways as the Senior Clinical Editor. I have been involved with Health Pathways for about three years and enjoy the change from clinical practice. I hope the work we do at HealthPathways helps our local GPs, especially when new to an area, to navigate our medical system.
What do you love most about Moss Vale/the Southern Highlands?
I like not having to commute! Having a backyard, fresh air and minimal traffic! I don’t mind I often run into my patients at the supermarket, at the gym or at school functions. Generally, everyone is quite respectful of work boundaries.
We have a fabulous group of GPs here as well as specialists and allied health and we all work really well together. It’s nice to know the specialists you refer to socially so it’s not just a name on paper.
We are also lucky we are close enough to Sydney we can do a day trip in for a fun family day. Patients are also not worried about travelling into the city for specialist care they can’t get locally. We are also close to Canberra and Wollongong, so have so many options.
What advice do you give your patients about maintaining good health?
I really try to focus on preventative care and education where possible. I like to empower my patients by educating them about simple home remedies for their ailments like heat packs, stretching, salt water gargles, honey for cough. I emphasise the importance of quality sleep, stress reduction, limiting alcohol, regular exercise within their capabilities, and eating less overly processed foods. We see a lot of people in our practice with chronic disease so often the focus is on preventing deterioration and working on stabilising their comorbidities. I spend a lot of time talking to people about movement and strength training to prevent or improve back and neck issues as a lot of our population are unable to see a physiotherapist.
24 October 2022
Practice nurse Amanda Cherry from Mount Gibraltar General Practice at Bowral has always had a passion for caring for people and making sure they feel safe and comfortable in her care.
Completing her Bachelor Degree in Nursing in 2006, and working across several roles in both hospitals and primary care, Amanda has recently been working closely with SWSPHN as part of the COVID-19 Monitoring Program.
She is also very involved in Quality Improvement measures to enhance patient care and outcomes.
How long have you been a practice nurse and how long have you been working in South Western Sydney?
I started working as a practice nurse in Canberra in 2012. I moved to the Southern Highlands in 2017 with my family and have been working in general practice in Bowral since.
Why did you decide to pursue a career in nursing/primary care?
I have always wanted to be a nurse and completed my Bachelor of Nursing at Charles Sturt University, Wagga Wagga in 2006. Growing up in Wagga, I loved caring for people when they were unwell, making sure they felt safe and comfortable. I worked in the public health system for five years as a surgical nurse in urology and gastroenterology. In 2012 I moved into primary care as I had just welcomed my first child and general practice was more family friendly.
What is your day-to-day role and how do you contribute to improving clinical outcomes?
My role in the practice is quite varied. I am a Well Women’s nurse and I’m able to do cervical screening, breast checks, Implanon insertion and removal, and I’m also a nurse immuniser.
I work alongside another practice nurse, Caroline, and together we manage chronic health conditions, perform health assessments, immunisations and assist the GPs with procedures.
I am very involved in Quality Improvement and looking at different areas of patient’s health we can focus on and improve. These areas can include keeping patients up-to-date in the areas of the diabetes ‘cycle of care’, vaccinations, cervical screening, osteoporosis screening and identifying patients at high risk of CVD. Quality Improvement prompts patients to take control of their health, start a conversation with their GP about their health needs and things we can put into place to have better health outcomes.
For the last six months I have been working with SWSPHN as part of a pilot program aimed at supporting COVID-19 positive patients across South Western Sydney. The COVID-19 Monitoring Program has also involved working with the Agency of Clinical Innovation Co-HOPE platform, and looking at how we can support patients with long COVID.
What do you love about nursing and being a practice nurse?
Our practice is a very family friendly practice. I love walking into the waiting room and knowing the patients by first name and asking how they are.
General practice is all about teamwork. It takes administration staff, GPs and nurses to run a practice and provide the best quality care for patients, and I love being a part of that.
What is the biggest challenge of the role and how do you overcome this?
Accreditation is a challenge I think every practice faces. A lot of work goes into getting a practice ready. But again, many hands make light work. Our practice manager Reece, sets us in the right direction and we get the job done.
How do you help educate your patients about maintaining good health?
Preventive health is by far our greatest tool. We are very fortunate in Australia to have so many screening programs such as Breast Screen NSW, National Bowel Cancer Screening Program, Cervical Screening and REFRAME Osteoporosis, as well as immunisation programs.
Our job is to make sure patients are aware of what is available to them and encourage them to participate.
Tell me about your ideal workday!
My ideal workday consists of seeing a variety of patients for different needs, ranging from chronic disease care plans, to assisting with procedures, and a few vaccinations. I like to make sure I keep up-to-date with paperwork and our QI, and help out other staff members where needed.
What do you like to do in your spare time?
I have a young family, so my spare time is filled with soccer games, bike rides and bush walks. I enjoy cooking and baking for my family. I like to do a little gardening when it’s not raining!
07 September 2022
Dr Jaime Baquiran was inspired to become a GP after joining a medical mission to the Philippines with a group of GPs. Dr Baquiran, from myhealth Macarthur Square, says the experience changed him and he’s never looked back.
How long have you been a GP and how long have you been practising in the Campbelltown LGA?
I’ve been a GP since 2017 and have practised in Campbelltown at myhealth Macarthur Square since 2020.
When/why did you decide you wanted to become a GP?
In 2015 I was working in critical care in a hospital.
I decided to become a GP after going on a medical mission with the Philippine Australian Medical Association in 2016.
We travelled to a place called La Union and went out into the region in groups. There was a surgical group and a GP group. It was an area where they don’t have any real medical services so doctors travel in once every couple of months or once a year to do what they can in a couple of days. Basically, you go there, the local council advertises there will be a doctor’s clinic which will run for a couple of days and the whole town lines up with all their ailments for medical care.
I spent time with the GPs during that trip, that changed me, and I’ve never looked back.
What do you love most about being a GP/what part of the job gives you the most satisfaction?
Two things.
One is working with other GPs. You get such a broad, eclectic mix of doctors coming from all walks of life in general practice. Doctors from surgery, medical and psychiatric backgrounds. So, you get this really interesting mix of skills and expertise. It’s nice for the community to be able to access all those different perspectives on what healthcare is.
And the second is being able to get to know my patients.
It’s not just about knowing them when they’re unwell but knowing them when they’re well. You learn about how they function within their family, within their workplace, within the community. You get a full picture of a person rather than just knowing about whatever acute illness they’ve come in with like you do in a hospital setting.
What is the most important thing you/your practice contributes to this community?
The health system is so complex.
If you take COVID as an example. The messaging has been so conflicting and so dynamic, changing all the time. We’re an accessible interface for the community to help them navigate the health system and the health messaging.
It can take a long time to get in to see a specialist, or to ask a specialist a question, but we’re always here.
With COVID, common questions we get are ‘can I take an antiviral? do I need another vaccination?’. Just being here, readily accessible for the community if there’s anything our patients need, is the most important thing.
What do you like to do in your spare time?
I help my wife look after the babies. We’ve got a two-year-old and a four-month-old.
I used to be in a band with some fellow medical students, and I still play guitar and study music on the side.
The rest of my time I spend learning to write computer programs. My interest is in the programming language Python and specifically trying to use that to help me do my job as a GP better.
Is there anything else you’d like to let your fellow primary carers know about you?
I’m a big believer in collaboration. If there’s one thing we don’t do enough of, it’s collaborating because GPs are so busy all the time. Often, you’ll have patients who go to different practices and some patients will have two or three different GPs. I’m always open to communication and a phone call from colleagues to collaborate on caring for our patients.
What do you love most about Campbelltown?
There’s so much interesting medicine, so much diversity of medical presentations and chronic conditions. It’s really interesting.
What advice do you give your patients about maintaining good health?
I see a lot of stress, a lot of people that are overworked and a lot of mental health and physical health conditions as a flow on effect of those things.
I also see a lot of stress due to the uncertainty of COVID. Things like people having to change careers or they’ve lost their jobs or their marriages have broken down, and there are patients with symptoms of long COVID and I see the mental health effects of that.
If I was to boil it down, I’d say a lot of ill health and mental health comes from difficulty managing stress and not maintaining family and social connections. Whenever I give any medical advice, I always try to frame it within that context.
As an example, it’s one thing to tell a person to eat healthier as part of the Australian dietary guidelines and it’s another thing to tell them to sit down and try and have as many meals as you can with your family.
06 September 2022
Providing a safe and stable place where her patients can come for their healthcare needs, but also to ask questions or talk through any concerns, is an important part of Dr Jacqueline Krantz’s role at Fairfield Central Medical Centre.
How long have you been a GP and how long have you been practising in the Fairfield LGA?
I’ve been working in general practice since 2015, so seven years, and I’ve been in this area for five years.
When/why did you decide you wanted to become a GP?
I decided to become a GP because I like the idea of treating more than the patient’s illness, that is, treating the patient themselves in a holistic approach where you get to know the patient, have a continuing relationship with your patient and provide ongoing care.
What do you love most about being a GP/what part of the job gives you the most satisfaction?
There’s lots of things to like about it.
I like developing that relationship with patients where they feel I’m someone they can trust. I find getting to know my patients helps me care for them and makes it easier for them to come to me when they’ve got issues.
General practice provides so much flexibility as well, in terms of allowing you to branch out and have additional interests with programs like HealthPathways (for which Dr Krantz is a Clinical Editor).
What is the most important thing you/your practice contributes to this community?
Especially lately, having been through the COVID-19 pandemic, with all the fear and misinformation and everything else that has surrounded that, we’ve tried to be a safe place, somewhere patients can access information and discuss the things they’ve heard, talk through their fears, talk through their worries.
We’re also still here to provide all the regular healthcare that’s been easy to brush to the side for a lot of people, especially during lockdown, and be a stable place where they can come to be looked after.
What do you like to do in your spare time?
I’ve got two children, so that keeps me very, very busy. I like to paint a little bit. I took up painting during lockdown. I like to bake.
And I’d also like to get back into salsa dancing which I used to do for a few years. We did the odd performance here and there and a lot of social dancing. It’s a nice way to get out and keep active. Dancing has physical benefits, but they say there’s cognitive benefits to it as well, learning the moves and practicing those moves. I really enjoyed it.
Is there anything else you’d like to let your fellow primary carers know about you?
I’m happy to discuss anything with my patients, including those topics that can be a little bit hard or challenging sometimes. I’m happy for this to be a safe space for anyone to bring up anything that’s going on in their life without judgment.
What do you love most about the Fairfield LGA?
It’s the diversity. Our patients come from all walks of life or cultures, all backgrounds. It’s just really nice to have that diversity, to be able to practice the whole spectrum of medicine, and to learn something every day about other people’s cultures and backgrounds.
What advice do you give your patients about maintaining good health?
It’s a cliche but that whole thing about “an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure”. It’s never too early to start making lifestyle changes, to start being proactive about your health, to take up good habits and keep them up, and to regularly see your GP.
23 August 2022
Practice nurse and clinical manager Rebecca Cade, from Macarthur General Practice has always had an interest in healthcare. Working across a wide range of specialties, her current role includes managing incidents, coordinating practice nursing students within the clinic, and ensuring clinical guidelines are accessible to her team.
How long have you been a practice nurse/clinical manager working in the Macarthur region?
I commenced work at Macarthur General Practice in 2012.
When/why did you decide to pursue a career in nursing and specifically in primary care?
I have always been interested in the healthcare field and did nursing for my Year 10 work experience on a paediatric ward. Nursing appealed to me as I’m someone who gets bored relatively easily. I liked there was an array of different specialty areas to work in and different career paths to explore (clinical versus management).
I spent the first 16 years of my nursing career in the acute care arena (predominantly intensive care and trauma nursing). I made the decision to move into primary care after experiencing some of my own health challenges. Unfortunately, the public health system wasn’t as understanding and/or flexible as I would have liked so I really had no choice but to leave and find another area of nursing that would be more accommodating.
Tell us about your role in the practice?
My current role is varied and can include anything from incident/complaint management to coordinating the placement of nursing students within our practice.
The main aspect of my role, however, involves ensuring evidence-based guidelines are incorporated into our clinical practice. Research has shown that merely publishing evidence-based guidelines is not a guarantee the recommendations will be incorporated into practice or indeed that clinicians will feel equipped to do so. My role is essentially taking these clinical guidelines and ensuring they are accessible to our clinicians in the most appropriate format. This may mean writing a policy or, for example, developing standardised decision support tools for clinicians to use at the point of care.
As part of this I am responsible for the development of our nurse-led clinics. Ensuring we are fully utilising the skills and experience of our nursing staff is essential. Practice nurses often do not get the chance to fully utilise their skill set – this leads to not only recruitment and retention issues but not letting them practice to their full potential is, quite frankly, a waste of a valuable resource.
Utilising our nurses in nurse-led clinics provides our patients with the opportunity to receive a comprehensive assessment, a tailored treatment plan and education in relation to a particular aspect of their health (for example, osteoporosis). The clinics not only empower patients with the knowledge needed to manage their health condition but frees up our GPs for patients with concerns that cannot be addressed by the practice nurse.
What do you love about your role and what do you find most fulfilling about it?
I love working in an environment where everyone is dedicated to making sure we deliver the best possible care to our patients. Being an independently owned practice means I’m not faced with a lot of the bureaucracy of some facilities and the practice owner/principal GP is open to pretty much any idea that will improve patient care and/or the patient experience, which gives me a lot of freedom within my role.
What is your biggest challenge as a PN/Clinical Manager and how do you overcome this?
The biggest challenge is there are not enough hours in the day to achieve everything I would like. The list of nurse-led clinics that could potentially be implemented to benefit our patients, for example, is endless however they do take considerable time to develop so it’s about constantly prioritising what is most important for our patient group and clinicians in the current clinical climate.
For the last two years, this has meant concentrating on making sure our policies relating to COVID-19 vaccinations and supporting pre-vaccination screening, eligibility assessment, consent forms etc have been up-to-date with the latest, at times, constantly changing, clinical guidelines.
Tell me about your ideal work day
My ideal work day would be one in which I complete something I have been working on! A lot of research and time goes into developing a nurse-led clinic, so it’s always satisfying when the development of a clinic is completed and ready for our nurses to implement.
What do you like to do in your spare time?
The beach is my happy place and I love spending time there although I don’t get there nearly as much as I would like. I also enjoy pottering around the garden at home and am about to start some mini renos within the house (the bathroom is first on the agenda!).
I also have a French Bulldog, Sophie, who I enjoy doing various forms of training (eg obedience, agility) with. Sophie is a qualified pet therapy dog, so we usually attend a visit to local healthcare facilities once a week. These visits are generally for the patients, however more and more facilities are recognising the benefits to staff and are booking visits purely for their staff members.
Do you have any role models and why?
I don’t have any role models in the traditional sense. I tend to admire/respect normal, everyday people who find themselves in adverse situations and deal with it with strength and grace. During my time in intensive care/trauma nursing I met many families who amazed me with the strength they showed in face of unbelievable tragedy.
How do you help educate your patients and colleagues about maintaining good health?
I help educate our patients about maintaining good health indirectly by developing resources (handouts etc) for our clinical staff to use and distribute to our patients. There are a lot of developed resources available that can be sourced, but I often find these contain too much information. It’s important we don’t overwhelm our patients but provide them with bite sized chunks of information targeted towards their health situation – they are much more likely to be receptive and take on board the information this way.
02 August 2022
Dr Aarielle McLaren enjoys the sense of community, and opportunity to get to know her patients and provide them with continuity of care, that the rural setting of Wingecarribee Shire provides. Dr Mclaren and co-owner, practice manager/practice nurse Jessie Smith bought The Practice, Bundanoon two months ago.
How long have you been a GP and how long have you been practising in the Wingecarribee Shire?
This is going on my fifth year. I’ve only ever practiced in the Wingecarribee Shire as a GP.
When/why did you decide you wanted to become a GP?
I thought about becoming a GP in med school because the University of Wollongong, which I attended, had a very general practice-oriented rural health program. I’d also considered emergency medicine and paediatrics, but in my intern and residency year I wasn’t really enjoying working in the hospital. I wanted more continuity of care with patients.
I wasn’t able to go straight into general practice so I did psychiatry for a little while because I thought it would be helpful for general practice down the track. Then I moved over to general practice once I could go into the training program.
What do you love most about being a GP/what part of the job gives you the most satisfaction?
I love the fact I practice in a small rural area and I get to see the whole family. I see children, parents and often grandparents, as well. It’s really an honour to be part of somebody’s life like that, to be known as their family doctor. It is a privileged to get to know things about people, their little quirks, interesting facts about them, in a personal, intimate setting. I also like the continuity of care I can provide. Somebody comes in with a problem, you do the tests, you diagnose them, you might send them off to a specialist, but then they come back and you’re the person who continues to take care of them.
What is the most important thing you/your practice contributes to this community?
We are locals caring for locals, we aim and strive to know our patients’ demographics and their unique needs. We listen to what they need and want such as trying to provide as many services on site to save patients time and money. We also invest in being part of our local community so our patients can get to know us and we work hard to gain their trust – it makes for a more robust therapeutic relationship.
What do you like to do in your spare time?
Well, I have five children, so it’s often running around after children. We have an acreage so we’re often pottering around being ‘pretend farmers’. For me, family time is really important and it was one of the reasons I was attracted to general practice. The hours are much longer than I ever expected, though, and now as an owner, it’s a lot more onerous. However, I still make sure I have that quality family time. That’s another reason I didn’t go into something like emergency medicine or surgery, I wanted to have the option of being there for the family.
Is there anything else you’d like to let your fellow primary carers know about you?
I’m really lucky I have a supportive family behind me. I have a very supportive partner whom I so thankful for – he never thinks any idea is too ambitious, he didn’t even blink when I proposed practice ownership, he always has my back. I have a wonderful extended family who are God send in helping us juggle the logistics of work and children. Having this supportive network allows me to do what I do. I’d encourage everybody to invest in that as well. Sometimes we get too lost in work, but these supports allow us to do what we do and have made sacrifices and compromises for us to do so along the way.
What do you love most about Bundanooon and the wider Wingecarribee Shire?
The people are really friendly, they want to get to know you as a person, not just as a doctor. I love the small town community (which is sometimes a blessing and sometimes a curse). You can walk down the street, bump into your patients, have a chat and really get to know your patients’ context.
I love that I’m not just the doctor, I’m part of the community.
What advice do you give your patients about maintaining good health?
I focus on preventative health. There’s a lot of things people can do for themselves to prevent illness. Preventative health is far more effective than doctors trying to treat a condition later down the line. There are so many preventative screening programs provided by the government now that are easily accessible and support patients maintain good health – ask your GP for advice and suggestions on how you can improve your general wellbeing both physically and mentally!
26 July 2022
An enjoyment of and great interest in people has seen Kate Whymark caring for patients all over the globe in her 22 years of nursing and experience in a range of different roles. Having worked as a practice nurse at Wollondilly Medical Centre for the past six years, she looks forward to every day being different and working with her patients to find the perfect solution to their problem.
How long have you been a practice nurse and how long have you been working in the Wollondilly LGA?
I have been a nurse for 22 years and have worked across three continents and areas of nursing. I have been a practice nurse in the Wollondilly area for the past six years.
When/why did you decide to pursue a career in nursing and specifically in primary care?
I started nursing as I enjoyed caring for people and quickly found health care/disease was very interesting. After having my third child eight years ago, I decided to try a change and get into practice nursing. After many years of hospital work, I decided if teaching patients about prevention can help the outcome, then it’s worth investing my knowledge and care.
Tell us about the role of nurses in primary care
A usual day in the practice can vary from wound care (both chronic and acute), immunisation of adults and children (travel/scheduled vaccines), assessing and triaging patients who are unwell or after injury, general observations and ECGs. I also assist GPs with procedures and preventative health screening for immunisations, cervical screening and disease management.
I complement GPs by ensuring I have a broad knowledge of vaccine schedules and updates, as well as keeping up-to-date with the services available in the area and assisting with referral where needed. I assist with making sure the GPs’ patients are returning as needed for results and screenings. I help the GPs by saving them time and assisting with the set-up of procedures and attending to wound care and other duties to ensure the day can run smoothly with minimal disruptions.
What do you love about nursing/what do you find most fulfilling about your role?
I love that every day is different and every patient is not the same. I have found what works for one patient’s illness or problem may not work for another. I love caring for people and helping those who need it. I most definitely enjoy seeing patients’ illness/injury improve or be resolved.
Tell me about your ideal work day…
An ideal workday for me involves lots of coffee, keeping busy with patient care and seeing to a variety of patient care needs.
What do you like to do in your spare time?
When I have spare time, I love to read books, go for walks, sample and trial essential oil blends I’ve made, and spend time with my family.
How do you help educate your patients about maintaining good health?
I help with patient education by having casual conversations and listening to patient problems on their level. I give advice on ways they can resolve issues which may be hindering their health. I often consult with their GP on needs arising or services I feel may be of help to the patient. I am always following up with patients after I have provided them with assistance to see how they are or how the services provided are going.
05 July 2022
Busy mother of seven and keen renovator Dr Emily Wright loves general practice and her Camden community. She’s passionate about building relationships with her patients and empowering them with the knowledge and support to improve their health. The Optimal Health Medical Centre, Gledswood Hills GP is this month’s GP Profile.
GP Profile – Dr Emily Wright
How long have you been a GP and how long have you been practising in the Camden LGA?
This is my 11th year in general practice.
I’ve been a general practitioner in the Camden region for about six years. Initially, I worked at Spring Farm and I was there for several years. I moved to Gledswood Hills at the beginning of last year.
When/why did you decide you wanted to become a GP?
That was very, very early on. I’d always wanted to be a doctor. I come from a really large family and I’d always been the family fixer, so it was natural for me to go into something which was helping people.
When I went to university and did medicine, I really struggled because of all the hospital-based placements. I didn’t like the politics or the culture. I knew very early on in my community placements that the community was where I was meant to be. I loved doing community mental health, I loved doing drug and alcohol support – anything that was outside of the hospital.
It was a very natural choice. As soon as I could get that internship and residency done, I wanted the GP program. I wouldn’t do any other branch of medicine.
What do you love most about being a GP/what part of the job gives you the most satisfaction?
I’m really privileged in what people tell me. People open up to me and I get to see every aspect of their lives. I get to see their achievements. They come and tell me when things are going well. I’m also able to help them when things aren’t going so well. I enjoy being a part of their life, and being someone safe they can come to and not get judgment.
One of the things I love the most is seeing whole families. I have patients I’ve been seeing for five years. I was their antenatal GP. Now their babies are five-year-olds and going to school, and they’re having their next baby. In some cases, I’m seeing grandparents, parents and children, and that gives me a great picture of their life.
I feel really blessed to have that connection with people and to have that fulfillment.
I feel most satisfied being able to give my patients advice on their healthcare in a way which suits them. It’s important to make it about their needs, not just what I think they need. And it’s not a one-size fits all solution.
For instance, I might have a patient who hasn’t got a Medicare card and I’ve got to be much more cautious with ordering blood tests etc because they can’t afford it. But then at the same time, I’ve got to be advocating to them that this is about their health and they need to spend the money.
I look at the whole picture. It’s very easy to get cranky at somebody who hasn’t taken the medication you’ve prescribed but what you’ve really got to ask yourself is why haven’t they taken it? Are they scared? Is it not affordable? Are there side effects which are unpalatable? And then work around that.
I find that even though it’s challenging sometimes, it’s always interesting.
I also really love health education. I love teaching patients about their health and reiterating the things they should be looking out for.
What is the most important thing you/your practice contributes to this community?
I think we provide quality care. It’s about holistic, affordable and accessible healthcare. That’s the challenge these days. We are all struggling with accessibility at the moment because everyone is inundated.
I make myself available even when I don’t have availability. A lot of the doctors here do that. We all practise best practice. We’re all on the same page and we work really well as a team. That’s important for the community. There’s good practice management here as well.
A lot of us also live in this community, so we’re aware of its diversity and aware of the challenges in our community.
What do you like to do in your spare time?
I love renovating. I renovate like a pro! I’ve been jack-hammering this past weekend.
Two years ago we were very fortunate to have picked up a tiny beach shack down the coast. It’s a tiny fibro shack, so little it doesn’t fit my whole family.
I decided, I can do this and just gutted it and started by installing an Ikea kitchen. I just kept going. On the weekend I removed all the kitchen tiles, I’ve replaced all the flooring myself and ripped out the 70s wardrobes and painted the whole place inside and out.
I also love musicals, movies and travel – that’s a big one – but I especially love renovating.
Is there anything else you’d like to let your fellow primary carers know about you?
I’m really passionate about the mental health and wellbeing of women and children in our community.
I see a lot of kiddies who are neurodiverse – I don’t know if I just have a radar for it. These parents often need to be told “no it’s not your parenting, your child is challenging”. I have pregnant patients who need reassurance about their pregnancy, or they might have newborn babies and have so many questions which are unanswered.
We are missing out with these new young mums. We should be having forums or dedicated community health meetings where they can bring up their issues and ask for the help they desperately need.
We should be teaching more about mental health, resilience and life skills, in schools.
What do you love most about Gledswood Hills/Camden LGA?
I love the community. I love the fact that there’s always someone who’s ready to lend a hand.
I love the fact that I can go out to the shops and run into 10 patients and they’re not embarrassed to see me or to say hello. Or I run into them at netball or school pickup. I love that about this community. I just keep my boundaries, like ‘no we’re not going to talk about your medical condition here at the netball, I’ll see you at Monday’s appointment’.
I enjoy the fact we’re quite diverse out here and also that we’re not all cramped in, there’s nice green spaces, nice walkways, parks and lakes. I feel like you can breathe out here.
We live in a really good community. I don’t feel like we have a huge issue with racism or crime. I don’t feel like we have a huge issue with social standings like a lower class or higher class. I feel like we’re all just working class.
I want to keep working in this community for as long as possible because the relationships, for me, are the most important thing.
What advice do you give your patients about maintaining good health?
I tell people that health is not just about illness. It’s about their functioning, their thinking, their mental health, their sleep, their diet, their nutrition, their exercise, their family, their finances.
I want to empower them with knowledge and support them. I’m not here to tell them what to do, I’m here to guide them, give suggestions, and help them make the decisions and do the work. I tell them there’s never a lost cause, there’s always room for improvement and it’s always a team effort. They’re never alone with their health. I think it’s really important to have one primary doctor for continuity of care. But I also encourage them to make connections with other doctors in my practice for when I’m not here.
I let them know I’m not just interested in listening to their chest and giving them antibiotics. I will help them with your Centrelink forms or their NDIS forms or their legal requests to my capacity. I understand that all those things influence your health.
I try to get them to recognise their strengths and take control of their health. That’s really important too. If you start educating early, they understand the red flags and what to look for when their child is sick, for example, and they won’t need to come to the doctor every time their child has a cold. I give lots of handwritten notes for them – I’m teaching them and they are learning.
