HOSPITAL intern James Stewart knows the pulse of a song as well as the pulse of a heart.
Dr Stewart first worked as a DJ and Sunshine Coast nightclub owner before moving into medicine, a serious change of beat.
No one can accuse him of not having a well-rounded background, having been born on a farm, doing major music shows in Britain and working as a roofer back in Australia before going to medical school.
He is one of five rural generalists completing rotations at Redland Hospital over the next year.
The others are Zoe Wright, Ryan Avery, Kirsty-Lee Palmer and Andrew Warren.
Dr Stewart said he was topping classes in biomedical science when it was suggested he should concentrate on medicine.
He has not looked back and is keen for rural service.
He and the other four graduates will spend 12 months at the teaching hospital as part of training for a career in rural medicine.
“My parents had a sheep and wheat farm in central NSW and then they sold that to buy an avocado farm,’’ he said. “...You never forget your bush roots.’’
Dr Palmer said she was encouraged to take the rural specialist pathway through her studies while Dr Wright has already sought country postings, having worked in Roma, Bamaga and the Torres Straits.
Dr Avery said he liked rural medicine because it gave him an opportunity to specialise in mental health, an area in which there was substantial demand in the bush.
A rural generalist is a doctor who provides hospital and community-based primary medical practice and hospital-based secondary medical practice including emergency and inpatient care.
Rural specialists also have skills in at least one discipline – emergency medicine, Indigenous health, internal medicine, mental health, paediatrics, obstetrics, surgery or anaesthetics.
Capalaba MP Don Brown said the interns would become the next generation of Queensland medicos.
“All of our graduates face a rewarding and challenging year ahead as they learn to navigate their important new roles and put into practice everything they’ve learned,’’ he said.
“For these graduates this is the start of their journey as junior medical officers under supervised practice on their way to achieving full registration in medicine.
“We’ve got a strong history of supporting home grown talent and this year’s intake is no different, with 80 per cent of the 2017 medical interns being graduates from Queensland universities.
“...It’s so exciting that we have five graduates starting their careers here in the Redlands.”
Dr Stewart is not the only one who has taken a roundabout course into medicine. Dr Warren is 50 and was a software engineer.
Redlands also had interns on secondment from the Princess Alexandra Hospital. They are Imogen Andrews, Jeffrey Brown, Ruby Chang, Katie Darch, Nicholas D’Elia, Hayley Logan, William McGahan and David Tran.
