My name is Bianca Knight I am a proud Biripi woman and a second year Doctor of Medicine student at the University of Sydney. I completed my Undergraduate studies in Nursing at the University of Wollongong, and worked as an Indigenous Nursing Cadetship with the Sydney Children’s Hospitals Network. I adored paediatric medicine and went on to work as a Registered Nurse in specialty areas including paediatric cardiology, neurology, and neonatology.

It was my time in neonatology that I really found my love for women’s and children’s health. I was able to work in collaboration with mothers, their families and their newborn babies.

I have a passion for Indigenous women’s and children’s health. I hope to specialise in General Practice with sub-specialist training in in these areas. I plan to open my own clinics one day, providing women’s antenatal and perinatal care, and hope to establish a model of care which integrates Indigenous birthing culture (birthing on country) with up-to-date, evidence-based practice.

To update you on my final year of medicine, which has been exceptionally challenging but deeply rewarding. I began the year by completing elective rotations in Cardiology at Royal North Shore Hospital, followed by Paediatric Emergency Medicine at The Children’s Hospital at Westmead. Both placements were wonderful experiences and provided invaluable opportunities to consolidate my clinical knowledge, develop my practical skills, and learn from highly experienced multidisciplinary teams.

I then commenced my General Practice rotation, which offered a refreshing change of pace and gave me a greater appreciation of primary care. I particularly enjoyed the opportunity to become more actively involved in patients’ longitudinal care and to better understand the important role general practitioners play in prevention, early intervention, and ongoing health management.

More recently, I completed my Medicine barrier examinations, comprising both an MCQ examination and a viva. I was very pleased with my performance and proud to have reached another significant milestone in the degree. I was also incredibly excited to learn that I will be commencing my internship at Prince of Wales Hospital next year.

Randwick campus holds special significance for me, as it is where I completed my Indigenous nursing cadetship during my undergraduate nursing degree with the Sydney Children’s Hospital Network. I am looking forward to returning to a familiar community in a new professional capacity and hope to once again contribute to Indigenous health initiatives, including programs and Closing the Gap resources that I previously had the privilege of supporting alongside the hospital’s Indigenous health teams. I previously supported these initiatives as an Indigenous cadet and Registered Nurse.

This year has required an enormous commitment of time and energy. Many days have involved waking at 5:00 am to arrive at the hospital by 6:00 or 6:30 am, completing full clinical days, education and tutorials, continuing my study.

As I approach the end of this journey, I feel incredibly grateful for everything I have learned and for the people who have supported me along the way. I am very excited to complete my final rotations and examinations, and to know that it will not be too much longer before I will be a doctor.

I would also like to take the opportunity to thank you so kindly for all of Rotary’s support throughout my studies. I truly would not have had been able to complete this huge milestone without your support.  Being the first in my family to attend university or become a doctor feels so significant to me. It is something I thought I would never have had the opportunity to achieve, so thank you so much.