Dr Niroshini Wickramasinghe from Narromine, NSW, has been acknowledged with the Australian College of Rural and Remote Medicine (ACRRM) Distinguished Service Award for 2023 for providing significant service to rural communities.

As well as being a committed Rural Generalist (RG) in her hometown and surrounding region, she is a dedicated supervisor to international medical graduates and registrars, helping them attain the skills to provide excellent healthcare.

Dr Wickramasinghe started working as a RG in the Narromine region in 2014 after she migrated to Australia with her family.

“The simple reason I chose rural generalism is that I felt I could make a difference in this welcoming community, Dr Wickramasinghe says.

“Narromine is a small country town with beautiful people.

“Being their GP, I get the great opportunity to be a part of their life journey, through ups and downs.

When asked what inspired her to supervise future Rural Generalists, Dr Wickramasinghe says it was the encouragement of her colleague and ACRRM Fellow Dr Neil McCarthy.

“I have been very fortunate to have experienced Rural Generalists as my mentors, including Dr Robert Kirkby, Dr Dean Wright, Dr Sam Wakista and Dr Neil Mccarthy, and I still remember words of wisdom from them, Dr Wickramasinghe says.

“Supervision and mentoring is a wonderful way to nurture junior doctors to be who they want to be.

“It keeps me up to date in an ever-changing profession and gives me great pleasure to guide a junior doctor in their career.

“Everything I have achieved in my career so far is totally due to the incredibly supportive team I work with.

“I extend my gratitude to them and I feel very humbled and honoured to receive this award.

*This story was originally published by ACRRM