Australian Doctor Australian Doctor 30th June 2017 | Page 11

News Review
Dr Hannah Jackson says no one makes
an issue of her disability.
DOCTORS
with disability
A new campaign
group is helping
doctors with
disabilities break
down barriers.
RACHEL WORSLEY
D
DR Dinesh Palipana has become
an inspiration to many. In 2010,
while a medical student, he
became a quadriplegic following a
car accident. After his recovery, he
continued with his studies, gradu-
ated from medical school and ear-
lier this year secured an internship
at the Gold Coast University Hos-
pital.
His story, which hit the national
headlines, is not unique however.
There are many doctors with phys-
ical disabilities working across the
medical profession.
Dr Palipana has now joined
forces with two other doctors, Dr
Hannah Jackson and Dr Harry
Eeman, to set up the campaign
group Doctors with Disabilities
Australia. Their aim is to become a
support network for both aspiring
and established doctors wanting to
break down the barriers. Here are
their stories.
Dr Hannah Jackson, GP,
Lindisfarne Clinic, Tasmania
I’ve had osteogenesis imperfecta
my whole life and as a result I’ve
been using a manual wheelchair.
It never stops me from doing any-
thing — if you think laterally. I’ve
had many fractures, and I’ve got
short stature and scoliosis. I can
walk, but not for extended peri-
ods of time and it can be challeng-
ing without the wheelchair.
I went to the University of
Tasmania from high school and
did the UMAT — there was no
interview at the time. I was given
my offer and then met with the
university staff to discuss what
adaptations I needed in medical
school. I did have extra time if
I needed it in exams. In clinical
situations, I had a bed that lowers
up and down to a height to exam-
ine patients. I also had a lower
table or separate microscope so
I could see things better from my
height in the dissection lab.
I graduated in 2011. In 2012,
I began my intern year at the
Royal Hobart Hospital. I had a
www.australiandoctor.com.au
‘TO BE HONEST, I FEEL MORE DISABLED WHEN
I’M IN SUPERMARKETS RATHER THAN WHEN I
AM AT WORK.’
— Dr Hannah Jackson, GP, Tasmania
big advantage — it’s a relatively
small community in Hobart and
only one hospital, so everyone
got to know me and know what
I was capable of. I had a lot of
great people from the hospital
who wrote letters to support my
original intern application.
Lack of awareness
When I reached my surgical term,
I wouldn’t scrub up and assist
in theatre, but I still had clinical
exposure and did the paperwork.
There were physical limitations for
me to do CPR, but I can instruct
someone else to do chest compres-
sions.
I eventually became a GP regis-
trar at the Sorrell Family Practice
and the Lindisfarne Clinic. And
I’m still at the Lindisfarne Clinic
today. I got my RACGP fellow-
ship last year.
I’ve been an independent,
strong-willed person, so I was
often educating medical profes-
sionals about what my needs were.
To be honest, I feel more disabled
when I’m in supermarkets rather
than when I am at work.
Patients will notice, but don’t
comment. Kids comment, but I
like their honesty. No one makes
an issue of it.
My overall impression is that
for some people who discrimi-
nate, it is often due to a lack of
awareness about disability.
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30 June 2017 | Australian Doctor |
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