A Fijian doctor who has delivered dedicated medical care to the remote NSW community of Boggabri – in the face of a significant shortage of doctors there, as well as the pressures of the COVID pandemic, and even a record-breaking mouse plague – is one of two recipients of the ACRRM-RDAA Rural Registrar of the Year Award 2022.

Dr Salma Hanif was presented with the award at the Rural Medicine Australia (RMA22) conference dinner in Canberra on Friday night.

She joins Dr Regina Waterhouse, a Rural Generalist registrar who has provided dedicated care to the Queensland community of Palm Island, in receiving the Award this year.

The award is presented annually by the Australian College of Rural and Remote Medicine (ACRRM) and Rural Doctors Association of Australia (RDAA), and recognises an ACRRM Registrar who has demonstrated outstanding leadership and advocacy in the field of Rural and Remote Medicine.

Born and raised in Fiji, Dr Hanif first worked as a doctor there before moving to Australia in 2017.

After initially working as an Emergency Registrar in Tasmania, she relocated to Boggabri – over 450 kilometres from Sydney – to undertake advanced GP training with ACRRM through the Remote Vocational Training Scheme’s (RVTS) Targeted Recruitment program while working as a GP Registrar at the Ochre Medical Centre Boggabri.

ACRRM immediate past President, Dr Sarah Chalmers, said: “Salma arrived in Boggabri potentially at the most difficult time to be a doctor there. It was not only the start of the COVID pandemic – and the isolation and stress that involved as a local clinician – but she also managed to live and work through the worst mouse plague that Boggabri had ever seen…despite having a fear of mice!

“She did this all without complaint – and since then, she and another GP Registrar, Dr Kumosha Abeyweera, have continued to provide Boggabri’s only medical service for the past few years, with the closest support from senior doctors available 90 minutes drive away in Tamworth.

“Together with her colleague, Salma works an arduous emergency roster where she is on-call every second day and night. As well as working at the very busy general practice, she also conducts nursing home visits and cares for inpatients at the local hospital.”

RDAA President, Dr Megan Belot, said: “Salma hit the ground running during the COVID pandemic – she established a local respiratory clinic in Boggabri, and worked relentlessly to provide COVID tests and vaccination clinics in Boggabri and Wee Waa.

“To deliver the mobile vaccination program, she also had to take on the role of a truck driver – by getting behind the wheel of a small truck – which she did without any hesitation.

“But it has also been outside the pandemic that she has had a significant impact on her community, by going above and beyond to ensure their care.

“She has organised support from a visiting Tamworth geriatrician to advise her with care for her nursing home patients, and also sought out a Palliative Care Consultant (who visits Tamworth) to support her with caring for her patients who require palliative care and end of life care in Boggabri.

“Realising the need for small rural communities to have doctors skilled in palliative care, Salma has committed to achieving an Advanced Skill in Palliative Care while based in Boggabri.

“Despite fatigue or challenging circumstances, Salma is always smiling and has engaged with the local community – and they have truly embraced her.

“She is highly deserving of the Rural Registrar of the Year Award 2022, and we warmly congratulate her on receiving it.”

Dr Hanif said: “I was really thrilled and thankful to have received this Award. It has been quite a journey and I would like to thank the Almighty first and foremost for giving me strength in such difficult times like the pandemic. 

“The local community here in Boggabri has been so warm and welcoming, and they truly appreciate what me, my colleague Kumosha and the staff at our hospital and nursing home do.

“There is a lovely old lady in town who always greets me in the Fijian language with ‘Bula’ (hello) and says ‘Vinaka’ (thank you) before leaving – I think this is the warmest way to show respect and be inclusive.

“At a professional level, I have loved the blend of clinical scenarios I have seen here in Boggabri – I think this is what makes working in ‘GP Land’ exciting!

“Some highlights for me have been taking part in emergency on-calls, the mobile respiratory clinics and pandemic management – but these are just a few of many clinical experiences and patient encounters I have had in Boggabri that have demonstrated to me, again and again, why working in rural general practice and Rural Generalist Medicine is so rewarding.

“I am very happy the mouse plague is over, though!”

ENDS

Media contact:

Patrick Daley (RDAA) on 0408 004 890
Petrina Smith (ACRRM) on 0414 820 847