AMA VICDOC Winter 2025 - Magazine - Page 42
D R M A RGA R E T GA R D E OA M
EVEN THOUGH PORTLAND ISN’T SMALL,
IT HAS MOST OF THE HEALTH CHALLENGES
THAT MOST RURAL AND REMOTE
POPULATIONS HAVE.
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We’ve 10,000 people living here and
some major industries. We have an
aluminium smelter and the third largest
port in Victoria. But in the majority,
we’ve got middle to lower socioeconomic
populations in our community. We’ve got
a lot of public housing, and we have a big
burden of chronic disease. My interest is in
the less visible populations. I spent seven
years working in the Aboriginal Health
Service, and I have an interest in people
with a major psychiatric illness, adolescents
and people that are marginalised for
one reason or another. As I’ve got older,
my patients have gotten older, so now
I’m naturally focusing on aged care and
palliative care, which I love.
doctors to experience the rewards of
living and working in a rural community,
because it is hugely rewarding. Before I
became heavily involved in and employed
by an educational organisation, we’d
host medical students at home. This was
through the Rural Workforce Agency
Victoria’s John Flynn Placement Program,
and universities. We’d give the students a
sense of how healthcare is delivered in a
rural community, and an insight into the
working and personal life of a rural GP.
COMMUNITY CONNECTION AND
PHYSICAL ACTIVITY ARE IMPORTANT
FOR OUR MENTAL HEALTH.
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I’m proud of the way our practice, Active
Health, has engaged the community in
a range of wellness activities. Alongside
our management of chronic disease, we
have a big focus on illness prevention
– healthy lifestyle stuff and building
community connection. In the last few
IT CAN BE CHALLENGING WORKING IN A
years, we’ve started exercise groups that
RURAL SETTING, SO HAVING A STRONG
have quickly become popular. We initially
CULTURE OF LEARNING IS IMPORTANT.
got people involved in short-term groups
where they’d attend six sessions, but they
One of the reasons I became quite
told us they want them to keep going, so
committed to doing education-focused
now we try to keep the groups running
work is because when I came here just
long-term. Participants enjoy connecting
over 40 years ago, I was by far the youngest with other group members while doing
person in the practice I joined, and the
something they know is good for them;
only female. It was professionally and
they’re supporting each other mentally,
personally isolating, and I didn’t want
emotionally and physically and they’re
anyone to feel like that when they were
sharing that that experience with
working or learning in a rural environment. others. I think that’s a great public
health outcome.
I also want medical students and junior
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AMA VI C TO RIA
