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“I’m in Broome, helping our kids get a better start in life.”

Milly Cahill
Child health nurse,
Broome

When I finished school, I worked as an Aboriginal health worker and I worked alongside some good nurses who encouraged me to go and do my nursing. So I went to uni in Brisbane and studied for three years and then I became a nurse.

My name is Amelia Cahill, I’m a registered nurse and I work in the child health program at the Broome Regional Aboriginal and Medical service.

The biggest problems for our kids here are problems that occur from overcrowding and the things such as ear infections, skin infections and we also have some issues with poor diet.

With my job we basically make sure that our kids are growing up healthy and strong. I make sure that they are up to date with their immunisations, making sure they are getting their regular health checks, and doing the yearly Indigenous health checks.

I’ve worked alongside a lot of families that are struggling and I like working with the kids, and I like working with the mothers to help them achieve the best health they can for their kids.

If you want to work in Indigenous health you have to be passionate about it, and you have to be patient at times, and you have to be caring. We need more Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander health professionals because we’re the ones who know the community and we know how our community works, and we know the issues that everyone faces out there.

Milly's story

Make it your full-time mission to care for those in need by becoming a registered nurse, a job that gives you the chance to stay in your community.

Nurse job description

“I’m giving our people something to smile about in Alice Springs.”

Lorena Walker
Dental assistant,
Alice Springs

I finished school and I didn’t know what to do so I looked at getting a traineeship. Sixteen months later, I got my Cert 3 in Dental Assisting and I’ve been doing it ever since.

My name is Lorena Walker, I’m a dental assistant and I live in Alice Springs.

I help the dentist in treatments with the patients, in theatre, I go out bush on occasions with a dentist or a dental therapist. I help in sterilising, health promotions, I go out to schools to let the kids know how important it is to brush their teeth, and to have good healthy teeth and gums and to eat healthy.

It’s a year of training, and a couple of times within that year they send you down to group training for a week. In that week, they give you assignments to do. At the end of the year you get your certificate 3 in dental assisting and that’s recognised all over the world. I enjoy everything about my job. Just working with people, all different types like working with kids, working with old people, going out and working with Aboriginal people as well. I think that being Aboriginal and seeing Aboriginal patients is a good thing, especially when you get people from communities who come in and are a bit shy or don’t really want to talk to anybody. Just seeing another Aboriginal person makes them feel comfortable. I love it.

Lorena's story

A role where you can give people something to smile about, staying in your community and learning on the job.

Dental assistant job description

“I’m helping our people wake up to a brighter future.”

Paul Mills
Doctor,
Sunshine Coast

When I was at high school, I thought I was going to play sport but my family and friends encouraged me to look at my options at university. I didn’t fully understand what becoming a doctor was, but I knew it was in helping people and dealing with people’s health problems.

My name is Paul Mills, I’m a doctor training in anaesthetics on the Sunshine Coast.

My job is to put people asleep so that they can have their operation. I look after them during the operation, and then I wake them up and look after them immediately after.

I went to university and studied for six years and after doing two years as a junior doctor, I decided to specialise. When I was at uni, I had a lot of support from family and friends, but I also had financial support from scholarships. It helped with not only accommodation but with textbooks, laptops and resources needed to continue studying.

Studying medicine was a lot of hard work but at university you make a lot of new friends and it becomes your second home. There are a lot of people in the same boat, who have similar stories and you’re able to connect with them.

I think the hardest decision you’ll ever have is deciding what you want to do. Working in health is very rewarding, you can travel with it and you get to meet new people and help all types of Australians, and you can make a difference.

Personally, I think every child has the right to be whatever they want to be. If you want to do it, if you want to become a doctor, the fact that I went through it and that I did it and I came from an Island in the Torres Strait – I think anyone can do it.

Paul's story

From family doctors to surgeons, this career pathway gives your people a brighter future and comes with support and funding while you study.

Doctor job description

“I’m making sure our people know there’s someone looking after them.”

Gemma Armit
Paramedic trainee,
Palm Island

I love my job, I really enjoy helping people. My family and friends are very supportive and they’re very proud of what I do.

My name is Gemma Armit, I’m a paramedic trainee and I work on Palm Island.

The job was advertised and I thought it would be a great career choice, so I applied and was successful. I went away for six weeks to Brisbane, initially, and I’ve come back and have been able to put into practice what I learnt.

I get most of my training on the job, and it’s really good because I’m able to get paid while I learn. As a paramedic Trainee I attend a variety of cases – accidents, those with injuries and other patients who require medical assistance. We may go to a job that requires a bandage, some pain relief or in worse situations someone in cardiac arrest that may need CPR until we get them to the hospital.

The work can get quite hectic, and a lot of the jobs we go to can be quite gruesome but knowing we have the tools and the knowledge to deal with them is quite rewarding.

My goal within the next two years is to qualify as a paramedic and from there I look forward to working either here or in other communities.

My work mates are absolutely great, and it’s a really good feeling basically just giving back to the community.

If you’re interested in a career in health, I think it’s important to not let anything hold you back. Don’t let yourself down by taking yourself out of it before you even give it a go. Because you can do it.

Gemma's Story

Enjoy on-the-job training and a respected role where the community knows you're looking out for them.

Paramedic job description

“I’m helping our mob get strong enough to tackle anything.”

Christopher Webster
Trainee physiotherapist,
Sydney

When I was younger one year, I was watching the cricket on the TV with my dad. One of the cricket players got injured. The physio came on the field and did some treatments for him, did some manipulations, and he was fit to play for the rest of the game.

Ever since then, and all throughout primary school and high school, I’ve wanted to be a physio, and I’ve stuck with it and now I’m here at uni.

My name is Christopher Webster, I’m a physiotherapist in training, and I work in Sydney.

Here at the University of Sydney, there’s an Aboriginal Centre. They help out not just myself but every Indigenous student here. If we’re struggling with some material they are more than happy to organise some extra tutorials. And also with the finance side of things, they are very helpful and if we do need some assistance, they are always there to help out in any way they can.

I have a scholarship currently and I also have a traineeship where I’m being paid to study at the university.

I work with people who have sporting injuries up to people who are severely disabled.

My family and friends in the community, they love the idea that I’m a physio and they can see that I can make a change to people’s lives. Recently in my last placement, I was working with a child who was five years old. He used to be able to walk when he was three or four but as he got older, he developed a behaviour called bottom crawling/bottom scooting. And that was how he got around from place to place in his house and in his classroom. I worked with him for two or three weeks, and in the second session that I worked with him, he was able to walk by himself unassisted and that was really significant for me. Just to see an improvement in a person’s life, well I think that’s very rewarding.