JCU Medicine Alumna on the path to being a rural doctor

Far North Queensland is a magical location. What a privilege it was to have six brilliant years immersed in the beauty of the land and the camaraderie of the people.

The rural and remote focus of JCU resonated wholeheartedly with me. JCU has a reputation for shaping well-rounded and grounded junior doctors who have innumerable character-building, eye-opening and hands-on experiences behind them. We had opportunities to experience an incredible diversity and variety of locations. Highlights for me were Proserpine, Lord Howe Island, The Kimberley and Cairns.

I’m on the Rural Generalist Program Pathway. I feel so fortunate to have early on found a career that combines my passion for the country and my desire to be a part of a community, contributing valuably and having a mighty good time along the way.

I’m proud of my family for getting me to where I am. I’m proud of each and every exceptional individual in the Bachelor of Medicine, Bachelor of Surgery Class of 2017. Above all, I’m proud of the outstanding rural medicine community for sticking to their guns and having the passion, the devotion and the conviction to bring much-needed services to the bush in the face of daily challenges and defiance.

I’d love to see lessening of the great divide between city and country. Education, exploration and open-mindedness on both parts would do a lot for the success of the great nation we all call home.

I hope to serve in the most remote realms of Australia and our world. I aim to settle in a rural community where I hope I can be the likeminded and down-to-earth doctor that eases the burden of achieving quality health in such isolation. I've no doubt this will make my own life immeasurably fulfilled, and I can't wait to get out there."

- Dr Katie Marsden, JCU Bachelor of Medicine, Bachelor of Surgery Alumna