I am a respiratory (and general) paediatrician. I have been back in Melbourne for 5 years, having spent six years in Alice Springs and then a further year commuting between Melbourne and Darwin co-chairing an NT Government Inquiry into their child protection system. Before going to Central Australia I didn’t know much about Aboriginal child health, but now that I have seen what I have seen and know what I know, I am passionate about this field.

At Monash aside from my clinical duties in respiratory and sleep paediatrics I am head of medical education in paediatrics. That means I am responsible for post graduate education for junior, middle grade and senior doctors. I love this role, as I know that in my small way I can influence the care provided to very many children by many terrific clinicians. When I hear about the great things our doctors do, or jobs they go on to get, I feel very proud to be part of the infrastructure enabling them to do it.

Other things I do: in my non-Monash time I do one clinic per month at the Gathering Place health service in Maidstone and I am on the Coronial Council of Victoria, an advisory panel to the Attorney General. I have found awesome training opportunities for our registrars via these roles using the Federal Government’s Specialist Training Program funding. I also chair my local school council.

I wanted to be a doctor from around 5 years old. Of course my roles have changed over 20 years so far as a doctor, and will change further over time, but I have never lost sight of the fact that medicine is such a great career giving doctors responsibilities and privileges sometimes even I find unimaginable. I would do some things differently if I had the chance, but I wouldn’t swap a single day of my career for anything.