Four new doctors have arrived in Deniliquin, helping to ease a long-running doctor shortage.
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All four have joined the team at the Deniliquin Medical Centre, managed by Ochre Health.
The new doctors are Poula Armanious, Alison Brown and husband and wife Nishan and Madushani Silva.
They will work alongside Dr Albert Liebenberg and short-term locum doctors to service the medical needs of the district community.
Egyptian born Dr Armanious studied at Ain Shams University in Cairo before moving to Australia in 2017, where he started work as a GP in Perth.
The 32 year-old said he moved to Australia ‘‘mainly to work in rural areas’’ and was excited to take up a position in Deniliquin.
‘‘My family lives in Melbourne and has been there for 40 plus years, so since uni I have been preparing myself to come and work in rural areas,’’ Dr Armanious said.
‘‘I chose to be a doctor to work in emergency, which is one of the medical fields that I like. But I wanted to become a GP because you have that privilege of seeing patients in the
ED (emergency department), specifically in rural areas, and then they come and you can follow up.
‘‘I worked in Wagga in emergency before coming here to enhance my skills, and I continue to do courses for emergency.’’
Dr Armanious said he’s already fallen in love with Deniliquin, and can see he and his Australian-born wife Denika staying long term.
‘‘I will be here for a good length of time,’’ he said
‘‘The rural life is simplistic, green and everyone is approachable.’’
Dr Armanious started seeing patients in Deniliquin in March, just before the Coronavirus pandemic reached fever pitch.
Adelaide-born Dr Brown remains based in Melbourne long-term, but will spend time in Deniliquin during her short term contract.
The 31 year-old started her six year course at the University of Adelaide in 2007, and then ‘‘moved around’’ working in South Australia, Northern Territory, Melbourne and now
Deniliquin since becoming qualified.
‘‘I made the decision to become a doctor in high school. I didn’t really know a huge amount about the world, but I liked the idea of learning more about science and the human body and to be able to combine that with working with people,’’ Dr Brown said.
‘‘I was already working with Ochre Health and I asked to move to a rural location to experience diverse patients, as well as to enjoy some nice scenery; the river and things.
‘‘When I asked where a nice spot would be, they told me Deniliquin had great people and a beautiful river so I took up the opportunity.
‘‘I really like the people here; they are very friendly, and I like being able to have continuity of care. You get to see the same people every time and know a bit more about them, their lives and families which I think is pretty enjoyable.’’
Nishan (38) and Madushani (36) Silva are both originally from Sri Lanka, and moved to Australia in 2018. They have been based in Campbelltown in Sydney’s west, and came to Deniliquin with their two young daughters.
‘‘We worked in the emergency department at Campbelltown Hospital before we came here,’’ Madushani said.
‘‘My husband and I met at the University of Colombo which is where we got our medical degrees.
‘‘We studied together, we practised together and then we studied for our post graduates together. It is the best partnership ever and works really well for us,’’ Nishan added.
Both have practised as GPs in both Sri Lanka and Australia — Madushani for seven years and Nishan for 12.
‘‘We like being rural GPs more than working in the city because you get connected with people, you have a closer bond,’’ Madushani said.
‘‘And I want my children to have this rural experience as well,’’ she said.
‘‘We had a particular liking for Deniliquin with the river and it being a compact town with almost everything, plus the lovely people,’’ Nishan added.
Nishan agreed there is an ‘‘instant gratification’’ associated with being a GP, particularly in a smaller community.
‘‘One of the things I did not enjoy when working close to the city was the lack of continuity of care. You hardly see anyone again, but they expect that.
‘‘I like the model in rural areas, where you become a GP and work in the hospital, and then you see the same patients in the practice and you know their back story.
‘‘That is satisfying. We also decided we wanted to move further away (from the city) where things would be calmer; we like it that way.’’