The JCU inspiration
As a North Queenslander through and through, JCU medical graduate Dr Arania Sivasubramaniam knew she wanted to study medicine with a regional, rural, remote and tropical health focus. Six years on she’s started her internship at the Townsville University Hospital. This is Arania’s story.
I grew up in the beautiful coastal town of Bowen just a few 100 kilometres south of Townsville. Although a small town, it provided me with an abundance of gratitude, for both the community and schools.
What inspired me to apply for medicine at JCU was its uniqueness. The strong focus on rural, Indigenous and tropical medicine really did shine a distinct spotlight on it. Coming from a small town and an ethnicity with substandard health, sparked a passion in me to serve vulnerable populations. Over the past six years, JCU Medicine has continued to inspire me, and helped me develop and build on that ambition. My goal is to medically serve underdeveloped and disadvantaged populations, with a particular focus on paediatric care.
Cowboys and COVID-19
JCU offered endless placement opportunities every year, which was where I learnt the most.
At the end of my first year of med school, I was fortunate enough to have landed a placement at the Sports Clinic NQ in Townsville with Dr Chris Ball. Chris is the primary sports doctor for many sporting teams including the Cowboys. He is an awesome mentor, being both comedically enlightening, yet well equipped with a wealth of knowledge. Coincidentally, the time I was doing my placement with Chris was the same time as the Cowboy’s pre-season medical testing. Chris let me help out with the teams — collecting their bloods, spirometry and vision tests. It was definitely a fan-girl moment.
2020 was not quite the year I had planned. I was scheduled to embark on my overseas clinical elective to America. However, just mere days before I was to fly out to the US, international travel ground to a halt from COVID. As you would imagine, I was upset — no skiing in Whistler, wandering Times Square in NYC or partying at Coachella. Despite this setback, I ended up having the most valuable placement of my medicine degree. The lovely medical team at the Bowen Hospital were happy to welcome me back (having just finished a rural placement with them). I mostly did night shifts, where I felt very valued and helped with a range of patient presentations, as only one or two other doctors were on.
I gained a wealth of clinical knowledge such as helping in a resus, minor procedural jobs and managing very acute patients, just to name a few. This was the most confident I had ever felt in medicine. I felt as though I was very prepared for my intern year.
- Dr Arania Sivasubramaniam
Interning in Townsville
In 2021, I am interning at the Townsville University Hospital. Having completed many clinical placements, particularly in my final year of medicine, I feel very prepared and excited for my internship.
Being at the Townsville University Hospital, I don’t feel lost in the crowd as I might have felt in larger facilities. It also still has that connection to JCU, being just across the road.
There is one bit of advice from med school that I would like to pass on to our future medical students. Surprisingly, it isn’t something educational. I was by no means someone who went through medical school with a flawless record. Because of this, I learnt about more than just medicine; I learnt about myself.
Being in med school means that ‘life doesn’t stop’. Life isn't going to be waiting for you on the other side of medical school. Although it may get tedious and there is a lot to learn, that doesn’t mean you can’t go to that music festival, be in a relationship or even start a family. Does it make it harder? Sometimes. But I think the important thing is to make time for it and understand that although medical school is a huge part of your life, it isn't all of it.