Sinead’s career took her to the other side of the world

As a young girl growing up in Northern Ireland, Sinead Cassidy always imagined she’d be a doctor. The one thing she couldn’t envisage, however, was that her career would take her to a life on the other side of the world in beautiful coastal Victoria, Australia.

When she graduated in medicine from Glasgow University in 2003, Sinead went back to Belfast where she completed some vocational training. “I especially loved the general practice electives and the opportunity to work in Women’s Health within a general practice setting,” she says.

Aftera trip to Melbourne in 2006 for an anaesthetics elective, Sinead travelled around Australia and was very impressed with what she saw. So, when her partner David got a job as a surgeon in Frankston just south of Melbourne in 2008, Sinead decided to follow him out and find work as a GP herself.

She researched career opportunities around Victoria using the Rural Workforce Agency Victoria (RWAV) website. “RWAV was extremely helpful,” she says. “I talked with them while I was still in Belfast, sent my CV and details over, then met with them when I arrived. They were a great support.”

Sinead started working with the Wonthaggi Medical Group in November 2009. And, she says, she couldn’t be happier.

“The practice is mixed in terms of case profile and is very professionally run. It employs three GP Registrars and two Surgeons. There are three aged care facilities attached to the clinic and we have VMO rights to the local hospital. And I’m doing a lot of Women’s Health, which is great,” she explains.

“Plus we are a teaching practice and have regular staff meetings so there is a lot of emphasis on sharing knowledge and professional development.”

Sinead lives in the attractive coastal fishing port of Inverloch, some 12km from her work. She is a 90-minute drive from Melbourne.

“We go up to see friends and take advantage of everything that goes on in a big city,” she says. “We went up for the Australian Open Tennis and the Big Day Out.”

“When you consider that I work in relaxed, rural environment, I live right at the beach with national parks all aroundme and have a major city close by, it’s a pretty good lifestyle. I really enjoy the work I do and the way I live. I couldn’t recommend itmore highly.”

-Story provided by Rural Workforce Agency