My name is Nathan Cash, I am a final year MD student at the University of Western Australia.   I was born and raised in country NSW before moving to Queensland with my family during my primary school years.   I did not always know I wanted to study medicine, but I always knew I wanted to one day return and work in rural Australia.   My heritage is that of Ngarigo Nation which spans throughout the alpine region of NSW/Victoria.   As a child I took many trips to Kunama Namadji (Snowy Mountains), at which time I developed a deep love for this region of Australia.   Before beginning my undergraduate degree, I worked a ski season at Mt Hotham, Victoria, rekindling my love for the mountains and the alpine regions of Australia.   I completed my undergraduate degree at the university of Sunshine Coast where I became interested in life sciences and decided to pursue a career as a health professional.  Accepting a Bonded Medical place to study medicine at the University of WA in 2020, with plans of returning to undergo my bonded return of service and rural generalist training on Ngarigo country.

This past year I have spent on placement with the Rural Clinical School of WA in Albany, a regional town on the south coast of WA where I gained valuable experiences both  practically and spiritually.  I ran a weekly clinic at headspace focusing on brief interventions for local youth suffering from mental health relating issues, many of the young people who sought support were local Menang Noongar.   During this time, I also undertook placement with the Great Southern Aboriginal Health Service, which was both educational and extremely rewarding.   This year I have signed on to be a director of the Ngarigo Nation Indigenous Corporation, a not for profit that aims to protect Ngarigo land, culture, tradition, an its peoples.