- Fluoro
- Posts
- April 2024
April 2024
🧛🩸 It’s Vampire Cup time baby!!! 🅾️🅰️🆎🅱️
Make sure you’re getting those lifeblood visits racked up, and importantly staying hydrated in betwixt 💧 More info below…
Read on for stories from near and far; a recent PIF opportunity in Orange, the latest cadet getaway and how the Deni-linquents are travelling down in the Mallee.
As always we’re always looking for regular and one-off contributions, including anything from research updates to movie recommendations. If you’re really keen and interested in joining fluoro as an editor (would love someone on the ground in Orange) please email [email protected] 😚
A word from the Pres
A few weekends ago I had the privilege of attending the annual President’s Retreat in beautiful Wamberal near Terrigal NSW. Here I was able to meet all the presidents from the med schools around Australia. I met some wonderful people all the way from WA, Tasmania and Queensland. It was a weekend of fun and planning of how we can advocate for our medical societies and also touch base with what other medical societies do. The major topics for discussion was how we could advocate for the cost-of-living crisis particularly for university students, planning Convention and how to get sponsorship for our medical societies. We also had some visitors from the Australian Medical Council AKA the people in charge of accrediting our school and making sure we are learning our intro to cells all the way to neuroanatomy ;) All in all a great weekend of meeting new people and learning how we can better advocate for our students.
Support us to support you by letting us know your thoughts and what you want by chatting to us or emailing [email protected]
Vampire Cup
🧛🩸 It’s Vampire Cup time baby!!! 🅾️🅰️🆎🅱️
Follow us here for info on how to join our tertiary team (old but should still stand).
We are doing atrociously (see below) so it’s time to pick it up. Being a small cohort with a blood donation centre in town we should be able to get upwards of 80% involvement (minusing those who need mobile donor centres at RCS’). And remember to tag us in your shameless instagram stories; if you’re not doing it to save someone’s life or even for the competition at least do it for the gram.
wtf is this team
🍊 From AMSA 🍊
🤑 Have your say in a leading research that will report directly to the Federal Government and the Australian Medical Association, led by the Australian Medical Students’ Association (AMSA). We are calling for paid medical student positions to the government but we need your evaluation! Find it here.
⚖️ Policy Author callouts for Council 2 are now OPEN, and close 𝗙𝗿𝗶𝗱𝗮𝘆 𝟯𝗿𝗱 𝗠𝗮𝘆 𝟮𝟬𝟮𝟰 𝗮𝘁 𝟮𝟯:𝟱𝟵 𝗔𝗘𝗦𝗧.
📖 Read our latest Media Release here!
Opportunities
AMSA NatCon M4
Melbourne July 26th-30th
tickets on sale now!
AMSA Policy Callouts (link above)
Doctors for the Environment supporting 12 Days of Action and Rally
April 29th - May 10th
Rise Up: Move Beyond Coal teams and grassroots groups are teaming up with our partners 350.org, AYCC, GetUp! and ACF to take action at MPs offices and in the streets between Monday 29th April and Friday 10th May.
With an upcoming Federal Budget deciding what gets funding, and a looming deadline for Labor to fix our environment laws so they consider the impacts of climate change, right now is a crucial moment to rise up and make our demands loud and clear: ❌no approvals or handouts for coal and gas ❌
Check it out here
Or join DEA here
BPT Bulldogs May 11th, June 29th
From Dr Phillip Butler (via Liam D)
Every year, the Royal Australasian College of Physician (RACP) holds major clinical examinations that have to be passed by Basic Physician Trainees (BPTs) to progress to Advanced Training.
The exam involves candidates moving around a set of stations in which they meet volunteer patients. Some stations are “long cases” and others are “short cases”. Regardless of what path you think you might take in medicine, being an examination assistant is a great opportunity to observe a high stakes exam, and a great opportunity to learn from the patients (some of whom have pathology that you may not have seen elsewhere), examiners and candidates involved. It is also something that is valued on CVs, as it demonstrates a commitment to the wider medical community.
Volunteer examination assistants are needed for the following days:
Saturday 11 May (Westmed BPT network trial exam)
Saturday 29 June (RACP clinical exam)
Exams are held at the Specialist Clinics in Orange Health Service. It’s a long day, running from approximately 0700 until approximately 1630. It would be greatly appreciated if those of you that are keen to participate contact me via email or phone (0423238435). Please don’t hesitate to contact me if you have any questions.
NSWMSC 3MT
RMA24 in Darwin, Oct 23-26
Abstract Submissions are open now
Student volunteer applications hopefully opening soon
Women in Rural Health Leadership Conference June 20th
presented by RDN in Sydney
earlybird regos now open here!
What's On in Orange
Orange Farmers Market
second Saturday of each month
Twilight Markets at the Palms
markets in Canowindra, every 3rd Friday of the month
Winhangarra
May 17th - usually scheduled for those on capus, well worth attending.
If you want to help out on the barbie get in touch with Rh+ too!
Psychiatry Short Course in Orange
In March this year I had the opportunity to attend the Introduction to Psychiatry Short Course delivered by the Psychiatry Interest Forum (PIF)/Royal Australian and New Zealand College of Psychiatry (RANZCP) on a wee scholarship. This year it was hosted by the University of Sydney School of Rural Medicine in Orange. There were speakers from various psychiatric sub-specialties including child and adolescent psychiatry, adult and forensic psychiatry who described in detail what their week looked like and the kind of issues they were assisting their patients to navigate. We also got to hear from a carer about her experiences navigating the mental health system with her adolescent son. We did a speed networking session where we were able to ask psychiatrists and several registrars about their experiences of the training program and careers. All of them told me that they felt well supported and that they were able to achieve a healthy and sustainable work life balance, and those who wanted to were able to work and complete their training on a part time basis.
hmmm yes psychiatry
I enjoyed interacting with the attendees who were med students from universities all over NSW. Some, like me, are hellbent on jumping into the program as soon as possible, while others were trying to work out if psychiatry was a path they wanted to pursue.
I highly recommend signing up to PIF if you’re interested in a career in psychiatry. Getting a little whiff of the mental health space every now and again is what helps to remind me that there is a light at the end of the health sciences tunnel, even if I can’t see it yet.
There are several scholarships available annually for various events and conferences and it is very easy to apply. Travel is also covered on occasion. Last year I was able to score a ticket and drinks vouchers to a forensic psychiatry conference in Sydney as a lowly first year, so don’t think that the opportunities will be out of reach if you’re early in your medical education.
Liam Devlin MDII
classic picturesque Orange
RDN Cadet Refresher
spot the Charlie’s Angels (CSU cadets)
Many of the Rural Doctors Network (RDN) Cadets including those from Charles Sturt University spent the weekend in Port Macquarie for the annual Rural GPs Refresher Conference. Students arrived from all over the state for the Welcome Event where we were sold on asthma puffers and hormone therapy, but more importantly had the opportunity to catch up with our fellow cadets, that we have all formed close friendships with.
The next morning saw that start of the student’s program in which we were welcomed to the Birpai country by Uncle Bill. Cadets had the opportunity to meet the RDN board and ask all the important questions, including ‘what makes a perfect cadet?’ We were then told about the rural training hubs and the regional medical training website which outlines the specialities offered at each location plus the training pathways. Why has no one told us about this before? was echoed through the room. Following this, the Rural Preferential Pathway was outlined for internship and apparently you don’t get told these things during med school. The cadets were then provided the opportunity to ask all the nitty gritty rural medicine and rural generalism questions. The afternoon was drawn in with a suture and punch biopsy session where we attempted to biopsy and suture pig trotters. The session was brought to a close with a wellbeing session and a quick introduction to the rural health pro.
However, the day was not over, it was time for the conference ball. The cadets joined the GPs for a bar tab and three course meal, where we had one of our own, Chloe Campbell, speak on her phenomenal boots to scrubs program. The night closed with many of us dancing to the live band or catching up with each other.
These RDN conferences always reignite my spark for rural medicine.
Mikeely prepping her dinner
example of the Regional Medical Training website
Flavour of the month: Deni (via Swan Hill)
This is Faith’s car
The Ute Capital of the World. Play on the Plains. The Guinness World Record holder for the largest parade of utility vehicles. Massive sheep. The rice mill, of course. Not just one Ute on a Stick, but two. What more could you ask for?
This is the newest update in the Mallee Clinical School placement adventure- 4th year CSU is now part of the Deniliquin community. Deni, to the locals (we’re getting there).
The 4 rural generalists who run the hospital have a mix-and-match of advanced training, one or more of obstetrics, anaesthetics and emergency. They are absolutely fantastic, a shining example of the dedication and expertise of rural generalism.
My learning in the last 10 weeks has been colourful and illuminating. From delivering my first baby, to floating around ED sniffing for sutures, harassing the GPs with long-winded handovers in parallel consulting, living with Josh and Hewie (so much shadowboxing) and just being embraced by all the nurses and staff; rural medicine strikes again. We are fed almost every day of the week. The ladies at the clinic bring in cake for everyone’s birthday.
It’s the med student’s dream.
Faith O’Connor
If you're interested in contributing for next month's edition get in touch with Heidi on facebook 💗
