The Flinders SA Regional Training Hub held a celebration dinner last week to thank and celebrate all stakeholders involved for their dedication to regional education, supervision and support of medical trainees and the local medical workforce.

Attendees included GP Clinic & LCLHN medical supervisors, LCLHN CEO, Emma Poland, LCLHN DMS, Dr Hemant Diesh, LCLHN support staff, GP Clinic practice managers, Flinders RRH SA Deputy Dean, Prof Claire Drummond & Flinders RRH GGT staff.

A highlight of the evening was guest speaker, Dr Vienna Tran, who spoke about her medical journey and how well she has been supported by many of those present who positively encouraged her during her professional journey and inspired her to complete as much of her anaesthetics training as possible in the Limestone Coast.

For Vienna, a career in medicine was not her first choice. Her first passion was astronomy. It was an eagerness to develop communication and interpersonal skills which led her to medical school, and an interest in learning more about living and working in a rural location which then took her to Mt Gambier.

Vienna started her regional journey in Mount Gambier as an intern in 2022 and during her intern and subsequent years, excelled , earned high praise from the medical education unit. Her dedication to teaching is evident through her engaging sessions, publications, and presentations.

Beyond her contributions within the hospital, Dr. Tran supports trainees and bridges the gap between hospital and community engagement. She ensures junior doctors and students feel welcome, providing bedside teaching, supervising procedures, and advocating tirelessly for the rural workforce.

Dr. Tran’s remarkable efforts were recognized when she was awarded the 2024 South Australian Junior Doctor of the Year and she is further developing her skills by pursuing a Diploma of Rural Generalist Anaesthesia through ACRRM.
Vienna said, “The joke I always tell is that I got into medicine by accident. “But rural generalism is flexible and offers so many opportunities to learn, undertake a broad scope of medicine and advance my career.”