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| Dr in disguise By Andrew Stackpool Volume 49, No. 4, March 22, 2007 |
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LAC Matthews has worked hard for the opportunity. After not completing Year 12, he enlisted on April 26, 2000, and was posted on completion of recruit course to the Army Logistics Training Centre, where he completed the pilot Basic Medical Assistant’s course. He was posted to 3CSH at RAAF Base Richmond in July 2001 and was accepted by Charles Sturt University to study for a Bachelor of Nursing degree, which he subsequently completed. He was posted to 321CSS at RAAF Base Darwin in 2003 and continued his studies, travelling at his own expense to Sydney each semester. He also completed the Air Force’s OHS and aeromedical evacuation courses at the same time. The university provided him with “substantial Recognition of Prior Learning (RPL)” because of his work as a medical assistant and this, coupled with his study, enabled him to complete the four-year course with Honours in two-and-a-half years. “To graduate I had to complete around 360 hours of clinical placement, using recreational leave and study leave, as I had Defence Assisted Study Scheme (DASS) sponsorship for the last one-and-a-half years of the degree,” he said. The university acknowledged his work and results when it awarded him the Dean’s award for academic excellence in 2002 and 2003, and after graduation, he was admitted to the Golden Key international academic society. LAC Matthews quickly put his new education into practice when he was attached to the Navy patrol boat HMAS Dubbo during Op Relex as an advanced medical assistant and then to Op Bali Assist II later that year. “I wanted to commission as a nursing officer within the Air Force,” he said. “Then I realised that I could potentially do more, and about halfway through completing my nursing degree I set my sights on medicine. “I did this to challenge myself and to have an official qualification and access to much better pay and conditions when I left the Air Force.” Last March, LAC Matthews sat the Medical Schools Admissions Test. Then he was interviewed by Flinders University by a board of three doctors. “In October last year I was accepted at Flinders School of Medicine to the four-year Bachelor of Medicine and Bachelor of Surgery course,” he said. “I want to follow a career in General Practice and Emergency Medicine once I have graduated.” He believes other members should also seek tertiary qualification outside the Service. “Any tertiary qualification will give you a concrete, real-life qualification for when you leave the Air Force,” he said. “It opens up a world of opportunity for those who want to expand their knowledge within their current career or in a different career path. It allows you to potentially access better pay and conditions and removes any ‘ceilings’ that can be experienced when advancing through a career without a higher qualification.” Information on qualifications and procedures for tertiary study are contained in a range of Defence Instructions on the DEFWEB. |
