My name is Maiysha Craig, I am a proud Gumbayggirr and Yaegi woman, and I am in  my final year of  the Doctor of Medicine program at University of Sydney.   I am currently studying full time and also working casual weekends and night shifts as a midwife, so I believe this scholarship would help me immensely to be able to focus primarily on my studies to be able to graduate.

My journey into medicine has been interesting and I believe it has made me the strong women that I am today.  I started working at my local AMS as an Aboriginal Health worker and whilst working there I completed a Bachelor of Nursing during that time.   I then worked at Coffs Harbour Health Campus as a registered nurse and completed my Graduate Diploma in midwifery.    After becoming a Registered Midwife, I then moved to Dubbo to work as an Outreach Midwife, providing antenatal and postnatal care to women from Bourke and Brewarrina.

Throughout my time in the medicine program at Sydney University I have been very active with extracurricular activities including being the Indigenous Student Representative for Sydney University Medical Society (SUMS) and on the Student Representative Council for Australian Indigenous Doctors Association (AIDA) in both 2020 and 2021.   I really enjoy supporting my peers and striving for a strong Indigenous medical student culture within the Sydney Medical Program.

I am passionate about women’s health and Indigenous higher education, particularly in supporting more Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander mob into the health care workforce.   In the future I hope to continue these passions by becoming an Obstetrician and Gynaecologist or Rural Generalist in my home town, as  well as working closely with the university and AIDA to support Indigenous medical students navigating their journeys to become doctors.

Very exciting to be writing that I have finally graduated and officially a Doctor! Officially I am now working as an intern at the Royal Prince Alfred hospital in Camperdown for the next 2 years.

The end of degree was at times challenging as I was on my surgical term and had long hours on the wards and in theatres but I was able to pass all my exams with flying colours (best results I had all of the degree!), which I attribute to being able focus primarily on my studies and not having to work during the semester (thank you to this scholarship).

I also was able to attend the LIME (Leaders in Indigenous Medical Education) conference in Canberra and the AIDA (Australian Indigenous Doctors Association) conference in Hobart, where I was able to meet other Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander medical students and doctors. It was a great learning experience getting to attend workshops such as suturing and laparoscopic surgical techniques, as well a fantastic cultural experience.

I would like to again thank Rotary for the support last year.