As a life long resident of the Northern Territory with strong ties to my Aboriginal background, lifestyle and culture, I have been continuously exposed to the shortfall in resources and cultural appropriate policies towards Aboriginal health.   When choosing my career path, improving the health outcomes for my wider community has always guided my choices.

Whilst working as a registered nurse in the Northern Territory I observed a lack of culturally safe communications methods, a lack of consideration of language, culture and health education barriers.   I have embarked on my current journey, studying the Doctor of Medicine to be in a position to improve this.   These mishaps within the healthcare system are a direct result of policies developed without the input of  Indigenous people with consideration of their specific health needs.   There is a lack of training on culturally sensitive topics being taught by Indigenous people and this does not five the opportunity for healthcare workers to learn about Aboriginal culture.   I strongly feel that having more doctors with ties to their Indigenous cultures can aid in bridging the gap and over time, set better examples for future generations, like myself, to have a voice in treatment, delivery of culturally safe healthcare and eventually be involved at a policy level.

I believe it is also important to recognise that by entering the workforce as a health practitioner, I will be increasing the number of Indigenous health care professionals in the Territory and the wider Australian community.  This is also an opportunity to continue to be a positive role model in my community and I am hopeful tat it will encourage our Indigenous youth to continue their education and follow their aspirations whenever that may lead them.

This semester has been the most demanding of the degree so far. We covered the Gastrointestinal, Endocrine/Reproductive, and Musculoskeletal systems; each content-heavy, clinically complex, and requiring constant engagement. The Endocrine/Reproductive block, in particular, was difficult due to messy and inconsistent content delivery, which made an already intense workload even more challenging. By the end of semester, I experienced real burnout. I was completely depleted while trying to juggle study, personal responsibilities, and leadership roles which all took a toll.

That said, I am proud of how I pushed through. I’ve not only kept up, but I have been performing strongly in all aspects of my studies. My clinical skills feedback was a major highlight. Both patients and assessors commented on my communication, cultural sensitivity, and confidence in clinical reasoning. These moments reminded me why I chose this path and reassured me that I am growing into the doctor that I set out to be.

One ongoing challenge was the way Indigenous health content was handled this semester. While it is a critical part of our training, there were times where it felt tokenistic or poorly integrated. As an Aboriginal student, this was frustrating and a reminder of how much work still needs to be done to deliver culturally safe, meaningful education in this space.

On the upside, I had some amazing tutors who genuinely cared and took the time to support us, especially when the content got overwhelming. Their teaching honestly carried me through some of the harder weeks.

At the start of the year, I made the call to cut back on all my extra roles, except one. I have stayed on as Social Officer for the Flinders Medical Student Society, which has been manageable and still something I enjoy. It has been a bit frustrating at times not being able to do as much as I wanted in the role, but stepping back overall was the right decision. I needed the space to focus on study, family, and just surviving a massive semester. I have no regrets about that decision and I am proud of myself for knowing my limits and setting myself up to strive this year.

Looking ahead, I actually feel excited for the second half of the year. We’re moving into Neurology and Psychiatry, which are areas I am really keen to dive into; not just because of the complexity, but because they play such a big role in the kinds of patients we’ll be seeing in real practice, especially here in the NT. After that, we begin Transition to Clinical Practice, which is the final step before placements start full-time next year. I am especially looking forward to that, as I am ready to shift from book-based learning to real-world medicine. I want to be in the hospital, learning directly from patients and clinicians, seeing how everything we have studied actually plays out in practice.

I have also just found out that I will be staying in Darwin for my placements next year, which I am incredibly relieved about. While I would love the opportunity to learn and work in remote settings one day, it is just not the right time for me to leave Darwin due to personal and family responsibilities. I’m really grateful I get to stay close to home and family, to allow me the space to be all that I need to be for them while remaining on track with my training.

This semester was exhausting, overwhelming, and intense, but I got through it. I’m proud of myself for that.