Associate Professor Kerrie Jones
BMBS ’87, GradCertClinEd ’16
By David Sly
A four-month placement at Central Australian Aboriginal Congress and Alice Springs Hospital as a Flinders University medical student was a fundamental component of Associate Professor Kerrie Jones’ medical qualification. This experience has driven her lifetime commitment to effect change through taking health leadership roles in the Northern Territory (NT).
“When I first arrived in Alice Springs, I was shocked at what I saw. I felt this was a part of Australia I knew nothing about. I knew so little about the health of Indigenous people in Central Australia and the levels of exploitation, discrimination and power imbalance Aboriginal people were subject to,” says Associate Professor Jones.
“I started to educate myself, reading about Indigenous history, colonisation and talking to others who worked in the area. I then began to understand the huge difference between the two cultures, as well as all those socio-economic determinants of health that needed to be challenged.”
Building her knowledge and making enduring connections with many remarkable people in the Territory made it inevitable that Associate Professor Jones would return to the NT after completing her training at Flinders University in Adelaide. “It was always in the back of my mind that I wanted to make a difference. I was brought up in a family that challenged social injustices, so I was primed to do things. My mother was a teacher, so I found that teaching came instinctively to me.”
Upon deciding to pursue her interest in emergency medicine, Associate Professor Jones moved to Darwin in 1997 with her young family to further her training. In 2001 she became the first NT-based trainee to qualify as an emergency physician.
“Of course, there were challenges that came with being among the first emergency physicians in the NT but there was an incredibly collegiate working environment,” she says.
Impacting Lives of Territorians
Her success sparked ambition and a determination to make change and have impact on the lives of Territorians. In time, Associate Professor Jones served as the Director of Emergency Medicine Training at Royal Darwin Hospital, then became the first woman to take on the role of Clinical Dean of the Northern Territory Medical Program. She then became the first Director of Katherine Hospital’s Emergency Department.
“I’m very passionate about supporting women to come into leadership roles in medicine. Setting up processes for them and mentoring them informally so they can feel empowered to be leaders has been a big part of my purpose,” she says.
“I stepped into roles where I could see a void. We didn’t have a director of training, so I took on that role and developed a successful training program. I was clearly attracted to making change and positive impact through leadership roles, and showing that women could have success in those roles.”
Associate Professor Jones, who now has academic status with Flinders University, works in emergency medicine based in Alice Springs. This role involves teaching and the supervision of students in Flinders’ NT medical program, a role she takes pride in – especially because it gives her an opportunity to share her knowledge and experience with the next generation.
She holds a unique perspective, having come through the Flinders medical school as a student, and now holds an important leadership role.
Improving Health for the Whole Community
“One of the strengths of Flinders, which has been maintained, is a great social justice perspective and emphasis on the social determinants of health. My lecturers were very committed to public health principles and improving health for the whole community, rather than focusing on private practice. That view influenced a lot of graduates – and Flinders continues that tradition, especially in the NT Medical Program.”
Associate Professor Jones has seen progress on some levels of public health care, but in some cases health disparities continue to widen. “We have rising rates of chronic illnesses such as kidney disease, which pose unique challenges for remote people in the NT,” she says. “But against these problems we’ve also seen better primary prevention make huge gains in reduction of heart disease and other illnesses. To maintain this, more needs to be done. I feel that we are at risk of undermining all these gains in health – and Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people are disproportionally affected.
“Until we fully address the many impacts that colonisation has had on first Australians, the poor health outcomes will remain.
It’s such a complicated thing to address, but we all must keep trying, working together, rather than in silos. It’s more important now than ever before.
“I’ve seen a lot of open-hearted generosity and a willingness from Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people to keep working on improving health outcomes. That’s what is really humbling, and what motivates a lot of us to keep working here.
We work alongside Aboriginal people to work together to help find better outcomes.
“We clearly need more Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people working in medicine, nursing and allied health across the entire Northern Territory. They are still under-represented, so it is good to be a part of Flinders University programs that are working hard to change that.”
Associate Professor Jones is involved in research collaborations that aim to make a difference, and is also teaching the next generation to make an impact – especially the growing number of Territorians training as medical professionals who will serve their local communities.
“It’s inspiring that I now work with doctors who were once my students,” she says. “We’ve had a big shift in the culture of medicine since I was a student, and that’s a very positive thing. It’s very satisfying to be a part of building a stronger, more equitable health system here.”