NextGen Medics student alumni Lavena Wills has always dreamed of going rural when she graduates with her degree in Exercise Physiology. But she didn’t know the mechanics of making it happen or what practising allied health in rural and remote communities might look like.
Then she was accepted into Heart of Australia’s NextGen Medics student experience program.
Lavena is a proud Bigambul, Ewamian and Kukatji woman. Born and raised in Yuggera and having spent many years growing up in Wakka Wakka (Queensland), Lavena already understood the joys and the challenges of living in rural, regional and remote Australia – including the challenge of accessing health care. She hoped the NextGen Medics program would enhance that understanding by showing her what it’s like practice healthcare delivery in similar communities.
“I was hoping to see what it was like to experience medicine out in the country, in the remote and rural communities, and that’s exactly what I learned, and so much more. It was a real learning journey.
“To start with, I was completely surprised by the Heart Trucks. I had no idea how sophisticated they were, the impressive amount of medical equipment and supplies onboard or how many services the doctors, specialists, and health workers could do on the truck.
“I was surprised by how appreciative the country patients are for the health care they receive. They’re so happy and so thankful that they don’t have to travel to a big city to access the health services they need. It shocked me just how thankful they are, especially in contrast to people in the city – if I run out of medication at home, I’m annoyed at having to drive five minutes away to my GP to get a new prescription. Some people out here would kill to have that problem. It really changes your perspective. You can read about health inequality for people living in rural and remote communities in your uni classes, but you don’t truly understand it until you see it first-hand.
“The Heart Trucks play an important part in fighting that inequity. You talk to people out here, and they’ll tell you – many will put off their healthcare needs unless a truck comes into a town close to them. I say ‘close’, but I’ve spoken to patients who have happily driven over 100km to come to their appointment on the truck. They’re willing and able to drive 100kms, which they can do in a day. That change in the distance makes all the difference – and not having to find the time and money for flights, long drives, accommodation and someone to look after their homes, family and responsibilities. Having spoken to people out west, they’ve told me that many of them wouldn’t or couldn’t make that big trip. They’d stay home, not get the healthcare they need, and leave it until it’s way too late – which is not good. It’s very dangerous.”
When asked to list her highlights from the program, Lavena said there were too many to mention. However, when we insisted, she managed to pick her favourite moments.
“To start with, it’s way more hands-on than I thought it would be. I thought it would be more shadowing and watching, but the program pushes you straight into the deep end, which is really good – being hands-on with patients and putting your uni skills to work in a unique mobile setting. “Then there’s the Theodore Medical Centre. The way they engage with and incorporate Indigenous healthcare into their practice is absolutely amazing. There’s still a long way to go for health equity for Indigenous patients and communities throughout Australia, but the steps Theodore Medical has taken is impressive and inspiring.
“Our visit to Emerald Hospital was also eye-opening. I love how the medical team appreciate the value of Allied Health, take a holistic approach, and work as a whole team side by side with the Allied Health professionals. They have the whole team speak to the patient together, so the patient only needs to tell their story once, rather than retelling it over and over again each time a new doctor or healthcare worker arrives. It was a really great example of how they are all about putting their patients first. I loved that.
When asked how important the NextGen Medics program is to the future of rural and regional healthcare, Lavena was very clear.
“The NextGen Medics program is already doing incredible things to help get doctors and allied health professionals to go rural.”
“It’s so important students get to come and experience not just one rural community, but many – so they can find the right one for them. I think Anne Chater from the Theodore Medical Centre explained it really well. She said to us, “when you’ve seen one rural town, you’ve seen one rural town – you have not seen them all” – which is exactly right.
“Every town has its pros and cons. And when you get to visit several of them, see them in action and understand them, you can find the right match with what you want in a home and work life in the future as a rural health professional. If one community is not for you, there’s definitely another community that will be the right fit.
“Australia needs more doctors and health workers in rural and remote communities. NextGen Medics is playing a crucial in encouraging students to go rural in their future.
“It’s motivated me so much. You make connections with doctors and specialists, health workers and patients, and they inspire you. They make you want to hurry up and finish your degree so you can get out there as soon as possible to help address the health gap in the rural communities.
“I always knew that I wanted to go rural, but by the end of the first Block, any nagging doubts I had were gone – I’m definitely going rural as soon as I can.
Charles Burcher is back on his farm 68kms North/West of Goondiwindi checking this year’s wheat crop for mice damage!
Charles saw Professor Walters due to shortness of breath on exercise, some pain at times in his back behind his shoulder blades and increasing pain in the right side of his neck and right shoulder causing right arm weakness, thought to be from a pinched nerve in his neck. Charles also experienced long-standing pain in his legs with walking. After going to St Vincent’s Hospital in Brisbane in June and having an angioplasty and stent done to his main coronary artery down the front of his heart by Professor Walters, Charles is a new man! The bad pain in the right side of his neck and shoulder was improved within days after the procedure and he was able to use his arm which was limited previously by the pain. Charles’s leg pains have also improved. Looking back, he realises he was experiencing back pain in the months prior to seeing ‘Heart of Australia’ but as he did not have chest pain did not realise this pain could be related to his heart.
Having specialist consultations by “Heart of Australia’ in country towns means that people like Charles can seek specialist treatment and follow up after procedures readily instead of having to go to the city for these services.
Many thanks to ‘Heart of Australia’ and Professor Walters for improving my father’s health! There is no doubt that my father would not be enjoying the health he now has without your valuable service.
Two years in the making, Heart of Australia’s Gala is finally set to return.
The annual gala unites the city and country, as specialists, operations team, medical aides, bookings team members, and supporters, celebrate with dancing and dining.
Held on the September 18th at the Royal Brisbane International Convention Centre, take a tour of our trucks, dine and dance as we celebrate the past two years.
Founder Dr Rolf Gomes says the event to people and team that are usually separated by thousands of kilometres.
“The Gala is always a highlight of our year,” Dr Gomes says.
“It’s a chance to thank our team, our sponsors and supporters and I’m looking forward to making announcements on how Heart of Australia plans to help more people in the near future.”
Our Keynote speaker for the Gala will be Senator Susan McDonald, Special Envoy for Northern Australia.
Senator McDonald has deep ties to regional QLD, born in Cloncurry, a town which we service, her family has a nearly two centuries long history in QLD agribusiness.
Her family is huge part of QLD’s cattle industry, with over 14 properties, where she has a young girl learnt how to work out in the fields and the value of our regions.
In her Maiden Speech to Parliament, Senator McDonald described regional, rural and remote Australia as “the heart and the soul” of our nation.
She is passionate about ensuring country Australia receives the same opportunities as our metro areas and we are looking forward to hearing her speak at this year’s Gala.
By the numbers – What’s there to celebrate?
Our seventh year on the road has seen HOA launch its HEART 4 truck and expand the Northern route to include more towns, including Sarina, Proserpine and Ayr.
That increase in service coverage has allowed us to have made more than 4000 bookings since the start of the year, have clinics in 32 towns and save our patients from travelling over 2 million kilometres.
The kilometres we’ve saved our patients in travelling to get to their nearest specialist clinic is equivalent to; Traveling around Australia 170 times; Circumnavigating the globe 60.73 times; Or travelling to the moon and back 3 times!
We’ve also added more doctors to the fold, with Dr Johannes Moolman, being our most recent addition.
Based in the Ipswich Cardiac Centre and a consultant cardiologist at Ipswich General Hospital, Dr Moolman, is bringing his expert medical care to our patients in Charleville.
In addition, we continued our NextGen Medics program. Providing students with the opportunity to travel with our Heart Trucks making contact with rural communities and learning about the services given in our custom-built road trains.
We hope to see you at our Gala on September 18. Tickets are $235, with the event starting at 6:30 pm in the Royal Brisbane International Convention Centre. Strictly black tie. Pick up your ticket here.
A new era is being heralded for life-saving specialist medical services in rural and remote Queensland with the launch of a custom-built mobile medical clinic servicing towns from the Mackay region to Cape York Peninsula.
Heart of Australia’s new truck, dubbed HEART 4, will see specialists from all over the country unite to give residents in Sarina, Proserpine, Ayr, and Cooktown access to cardiology, sonography, cardiac monitoring, sleep diagnostics and respiratory services. New towns and services will be added as demand dictates.
The Australian Government is investing $12 million to support and expand the Heart of Australia program, including the delivery of the service’s fourth mobile medical clinic to access the new route across northern Queensland.
Federal Minister for Regional Health, Mark Coulton said the Government’s support represents a significant boost to Heart of Australia, ensuring it continues to provide high-quality healthcare to some of the nation’s most isolated communities.
“Bringing specialist services to the rural and remote areas means improving access for Queenslanders in these communities, many of whom face significant distances to get the health care they need,” Minister Coulton said.
“I am excited to see HEART 4 hit the road, and I’m sure the Northern communities to which its headed look forward to it arriving in their town soon.”
Foundation partner Arrow Energy’s Vice President External Relations and Tenure Management, Leisa Elder said Heart of Australia is saving lives by addressing an imbalance experienced by people in the bush.
“Arrow Energy is proud to have supported Heart of Australia from its inception seven years ago and today’s expansion represents a great step forward with more patients granted access to high-quality healthcare in some of the most remote areas of Queensland,” Ms Elder said.
Since launching its first truck in 2014, Heart of Australia has travelled more than 500,000 kilometres, seen more than 11,000 patients, and saved more than 400 lives as it aims to close the gap between healthcare services available to people in the city and those living in the bush. Heart of Australia Founder and cardiologist, Dr Rolf Gomes mortgaged his home to build the first truck seven years ago.
“We are very excited the Federal Government partnership allows us to build this fourth truck and open a new route. It means we are now servicing patients from Stanthorpe in southern Queensland to Weipa in the far north. We know we’ve helped saved lives and with HEART 4 we will be able to save even more. It’s a step towards making sure country Australians have the same chance of a long and healthy life through better access to healthcare,“ Dr Gomes said.
The launch of HEART 4 is an important next step in Heart of Australia’s goal to break borders and provide mobile medical services across the country.
Dr Alexander Dashwood has always had an interest in the rural communities of Australia. He previously worked with the indigenous cardiac outreach programme and thought this initiative was the perfect way to give back to the rural communities and to improve cardiac health to those living in rural and remote communities.
So when he first discovered the Heart of Australia program, he thought it was the perfect fit for him. Dr Dashwood enjoys working with patients cut from a different cloth to those living in metropolitan areas. He says “Despite having chest pain, many patients will be out on their ten thousand acre properties locating cattle rather than finding a resolution for their ailments.”
Dr Dashwood recalls one patient who was a sheep sheerer. He was experiencing worsening exertional chest pain which had developed over two weeks. After much convincing by his daughter, he decided to see a cardiologist.
After explaining his symptoms to Dr Dashwood, the patient underwent an exercise stress echocardiogram revealing extensive inducible ischemia. Inducible ischemia is the presence of abnormalities in the heart during exercise, however not at rest. Due to the acute history and echo findings, Dr Dashwood instructed the patient to travel to Brisbane on the same flight as him that afternoon rather than his original plan; to drive 700kms into central Queensland to sheer 400 sheep the next day. Fortunately he agreed and a stent was deployed into one of the main coronary arteries the next morning.
Another patient was experiencing shortness of breath for over a year. She thought it was time to visit her GP after she was unable to walk further than 15 metres while doing her grocery shopping. She received a referral to Heart of Australia and booked an appointment. During her visit an echocardiogram revealed a severely enlarged right ventricle with severe tricuspid regurgitation and a right ventricular systolic pressure (RVSP) of >90mmHg. The standard RVSP rate is 12-16mmHg.
Dr Dashwood was able to organise an urgent admission to The Prince Charles Hospital with rural liaison officers. Dr Dashwood says “We got the specialised pulmonary HTN team involved and started her on special access medication. She can now walk to the shops and has a great quality of life.”
In 2021 Dr Dashwood’s role with Heart of Australia is expanding. While being one of the much loved cardiologists, he will also be the primary contact for all Heart of Australia medical specialists as well as manage the educational programs. Dr Dashwood’s skills and experience are imperative to the Heart of Australia program, and to those living in rural and remote communities.
