Francis Leung

Dr. Francis Leung, 48 and based in Melbourne, recently completed a three week placement in the Northern Territory for the Remote Area Health Corps (RAHC). RAHC is part of the federal government’s Expanded Health Service Delivery Initiative (EHSDI), which is addressing the gap in life expectancy between Indigenous and non-Indigenous Australians. Placements range from three weeks up to three months and are based on the specific requests of the NT Department of Health and Families (NT DHF) and the Aboriginal Medical Services (AMS). Here, Dr. Leung recounts his experiences during his assignment on the program in the Katherine region.
 

Having previously been involved in the Federal Government’s child health checks in Alice Springs, I had an interest in understanding more about Aboriginal cultures, way of life and healthcare improvements. After finishing that project, I received an email from the RAHC program coordinators seeking help from city-based GPs for short term assignments in the NT, due to GP shortages in the region.

RAHC provides participants with plenty of preparation material ahead of assignments in the NT. Although I was already familiar with issues in the region I found the cultural training and orientation RAHC organised beforehand really useful, as it allows you to have face-to-face time with Indigenous health workers and experienced remote area nurses (RAN) to pick up tips on what to expect and how to deal with culturally sensitive issues.

There were quite a few highlights during my placement in the NT as I was often learning new skills and innovative, alternative resources for treatment. During one clinic appointment, I watched with interest as a visiting technician used a portable ultrasound machine to detect a child’s greenstick fracture, saving a 600km round trip by light aircraft for an x-ray. As a city-based GP I don’t usually deal with broken bones so I didn’t know that was possible – you learn something new every day!

My assignment fell during the wet season in the NT which made access to isolated areas more difficult, but the work was incredibly rewarding and the results often immediate. One day, due to flooding, we had to take a boat out to a remote community where a mother brought her one year-old child to the clinic with a chest infection. He was very wheezy but we were able to treat him on the spot and see an improvement straight away which was really gratifying. Ear infections were also rife in the community, particularly among babies and young children, and we were able to provide treatment to try and eradicate the problem.

I also enjoyed having the opportunity to share skills and work as a team with other healthcare professionals who were on site with me, and where possible we operated a mini-referral process between us. For example, I spent one week working in a group with a podiatrist from New Zealand, so when I saw a diabetic patient with a foot problem, I was able to refer her to him.

Working with RAHC has helped me develop a much better understanding of the issues facing rural Indigenous communities. I’ve been quite affected by the experience and feel there is still much more work to be done so I’m going back on my second assignment with RAHC in July. My daughter is in her third year studying medicine at the University of Melbourne, and she said her classmates often talk about doing volunteer medical work overseas. I keep reminding them that there is work to be done in their backyard too!