January 14, 2021Growing up in Kenya, Ashni witnessed a struggling and under-resourced healthcare system and how it impacts the lives of people around her. Her love for science, the human body and her desire to help others made her realise early in life she wanted to become a doctor.
At the age of just 18, Ashni came to Australia on her own to study, and now calls Australia home.
“It was a bit difficult in the beginning and I missed my family. But I met so many friendly and lovely people here and made lots of friends, and those friends became my family. I love Australia,” she said.
Ashni studied medicine at the University of Melbourne, and Northern Health was her clinical school for three years.
“My study experience here has been great. Doctors were great teachers and I always felt part of the team. The culture here is very friendly and I really enjoyed my time here as a student. That is why I applied to do the internship here, and Northern was my top choice,” she said.
As a student, Ashni was involved in numerous roles at Northern Health – research within the Respiratory Department, focusing on oxygen use, and helping with our COVID-19 response.
“We are looking at patterns of oxygen use in the hospital. It was an amazing experience which sparked my interest in research. I am hoping to get a chance to work with the team in the future,” she said.
Working as part of the COVID-19 response team gave Ashni new perspectives and insights into infection prevention, COVID-safe auditing, and also Northern working culture, which she describes as friendly and welcoming. It was also a chance for her to better understand the broad range of opportunities offered at Northern Health.
Last week, she joined Northern Health as one of our 2021 interns.
“We had a well-organised, socially-distanced orientation which was super useful. We learned about the policies and procedures at the hospital and were slowly introduced to our roles, as well as our lovely co-interns. I started on a general surgery rotation this week and it has been really good so far – a steep learning curve and early mornings, but it is really nice to be part of the team and contribute to a patient’s medical management, and ensuring they get the best possible care,” she said.
Currently, Ashni is just happy to be part of the team and local community, and provide holistic care to our patients. In the future, Ashni is interested in physician training as a junior doctor.
“I am interested in Cardiology and Respiratory, or general practice – I still haven’t decided which path to take. I am also interested in research and hope to expand my research experience here,” she said.
“It is exciting to be part of such a rapidly expanding health service, and see my career develop alongside the continued expansion of Northern Health,” she added.
