My name is Talia Cooke, I am a proud Gunnai Kurnai and Gunditjmara woman born and raised in the Latrobe Valley region of Victoria. Since I was young, I knew I wanted to be a doctor. Coming from a blue-collar family with no healthcare workers has proved this adventure to be unpredictable at best. I am extremely proud to say I am entering my fourth year of Medicine at Monash University and have enjoyed every step of the journey.

My first two years of university were completed in the suburbs of Melbourne, I have been fortunate enough to do placement last year and the remainder of this year in the community I grew up in. Currently I am on my GP rotation in my hometown and was supported by faculty to undergo some of my learning at an Aboriginal Community Controlled Health Organisation.

I have a strong interest in community health as well as obstetrics and gynaecology. I hope to continue my studies to become a GPO (General practitioner obstetrician). Being proud of my regional background, I am a passionate advocate for Indigenous health services and regional and rural health and hope to give back to the communities that raised me.

I am committed to contributing to a culturally appropriate workforce by ensuring representation within the health sector. Growing up regionally and not seeing Indigenous people represented in the healthcare workforce has shown how difficult accessibility can be for our mob. I am a firm believer that if healthcare reflects the community we treat, our communities will gain more trust in the system and be more likely to be proactive and take control of their health and wellbeing.

I am also a proud advocate for education to Indigenous students in my community. I have had the pleasure of sharing my story to students at a variety of events and schools. I hope by sharing my adversities and pathways that got me into Medicine will prove to the next generation that just because they don’t see Indigenous doctors, doesn’t mean we can’t be Indigenous doctors. If I can inspire just one student to pursue their own dream of a career in healthcare, I know this has the power to improve Indigenous health. Representation, advocacy, and commitment in our communities can the strength our mobs need to improve the outcomes of our health and wellbeing.

I recently completed 18 weeks of General Practice (GP) placement in the town I grew up in. I had a fantastic opportunity to do placement both at a local community GP clinic and at a local Indigenous clinic – more often than not I had the chance to see my own patients, be an active part of their medical journey and actually see them get better with each review.

Doing placement in my home town was a very touching experience and at times I feel this connection to the area was my greatest strength when building rapport with my patients. Most people I had spoken to would grin from ear to ear once they found out the medical student taking their blood pressure grew up three streets away from their home. It felt almost like a full circle moment to treat the members of the community I grew up in. The encouragement and uplifting words were a great support.

I remember my first few weeks of GP I was so nervous. I did not feel confident in my ability to take the right histories or make the right diagnoses – the thought of prescribing the wrong medication always played in the back of my mind. It took me a few weeks to find my feet and get more comfortable in my own skills. I have my supervisors and the teams I worked with to thank for my clinical development. My supervisors were always there to push me to think, to challenge myself but also trust my gut when I did make a decision. They were monumental in my learning, I was always excited going into placement because I knew I would learn something new. My supervisors were all people I will continue to look up to.  A big takeaway I have from placement was a quote that one of my supervisors made sure to remind me – “The art of medicine consists of amusing the patient while nature cures the disease”.

One of the most memorable times in GP I had was at the Indigenous clinic. Medicine here was often much more complex and the people I met and emotions I saw were so raw. It really touched my spirit, and I hope it touched their spirits too when I got to see mob. I would always introduce myself with my cultural ties to the area and let them know with pride that I am Indigenous and training to be a Doctor. I was so honoured to hear that people felt like talking to me was ‘easy’, and that I could make them comfortable talking about their issues. I once cried with a patient, completely overwhelmed with happy emotions because an Auntie that I hadn’t met before told me ‘I’m proud of you bub, keep doing what you’re doing’. Moments like that reassure me with how I want my future to look and to keep working towards my aspirations.

At the start of the year the specialty I wanted to pursue was GP-Obstetrician. So far, this year has only emphasised this aspiration. I was fortunate to do some placement with the local Koori Maternity Service, shadowing an endorsed midwife who was an absolute wealth of knowledge and full of inspiration. Currently, I am 4 weeks into my Obstetrics and Gynaecology rotation at the hospital. I have been able to scrub in at the operating theatre and assist with all different types of surgeries.  I have seen five births and even got to hold one of the newborns after we delivered them via c-section! I am thoroughly enjoying my studies so far – I am growing so much, and I feel that I am improving exponentially in personal development and clinical development.

Outside of medicine my partner and our two cats keep me sane (and stuck to the couch!). One of my personal goals was to try and read more books, and so far I have really enjoyed ‘Eve’ by Cat Bohannon. I have also found joy in returning to my childhood soccer team. The team I captain is an amazing group, some of the girls are only young (13-14) and it’s been a great year to watch all of their skills develop. I am so proud of their efforts and really excited to continue playing with them for years down the line. Playing with them has me thinking about getting more involved with my club in the future and maybe even coaching a junior girls team.

My next adventures will be a rotation in paediatrics and psychiatry followed by all of my end-of year exams.