Wagga Wagga Information Night

At UNSW Wagga Wagga’s new biomedical sciences building, Boots to Scrubs held their annual meet and greet with young high school and medical students aspiring for a career in rural medicine. It was fantastic to see so many young women, supported by teachers and parents, come along and learn about the opportunities available to them in medicine.

Three speakers from our team - Chloe Campbell, Isabella Pakes and Elise Drum - gave the attendees information about the pathways into medicine, insight into the life of a medical student and some ideas about what a career in medicine looks like after medical school. The talk included a breakdown of information that is important to know about when applying to medicine - a lot of which can be easily found on the Boots to Scrubs website.

The event also included guest speaker, Dr Jane Armstrong, a local Emergency physician who works at the Wagga Wagga Base Hospital. Dr Armstrong completed many years of her medical training in the country and has roots as a rural farm girl herself. Working at Wagga Wagga gave her plenty of experience and support in developing her skills as a clinician, and has allowed her to also be close to family for a good work-life balance. Jane reinforced all that Boots to Scrubs hopes to assure our audience - that training and practice as a woman in medicine, in the country, can be done!

Through these presenters at Wagga Wagga, the attendees were able to hear directly from country women who have navigated the pathway they find themselves considering. Aside from all the information on interviews and application deadlines, the resounding message was that “You can do it too!” and that there are many ways it can be done. The event also gave the students to personally ask questions of the presenters at the end of the night, giving many the reassurance they needed.