Awarding Excellence in Healthcare

The annual DIT Awards is a highly anticipated event on the calendar – not only because it’s a chance for junior doctors to socialise and a take a break from their busy careers, but it’s a rare opportunity to recognise the achievements of some truly remarkable colleagues.

AMA (NSW), together with ASMOF (NSW), and sponsors NSW Health, HETI, Cutcher&Neale, MDA National and Lexus Sydney City, held the awards on 7 October in Sydney’s The Ivy.

Special guests included DIT Committee Chair Dr Tessa Kennedy who hosted the event, as well as AMA (NSW) President Prof Brad Frankum, ASMOF (NSW) President Dr Tony Sara, and NSW Health’s Deputy Secretary Karen Crawshaw.

We would also like to thank Dr Danielle McMullen who emceed this year’s event, bringing her usual warmth and humour to the podium.

In his speech, AMA (NSW) President Prof Brad Frankum noted that the competition for this year’s awards was particularly tough.

“Each of the finalists here tonight are worthy of note and we hope you realise what an elite group of doctors you are in.”

He added, “The people being celebrated tonight are the ‘total package’. Not only are they good clinicians, capable managers, and knowledgeable teachers – but they are the type of people that others seek out for advice, both professional and personal. They are the type of people that others consider not just good colleagues, but friends and mentors. They foster a much needed sense of collegiality that helps form the support networks all of us rely on to perform in a career, that quite frankly, can be as emotionally and physically exhausting as it is rewarding.”

In her speech, AMSA President Elise Buisson said she was encouraged by the finalists and winners of the DIT awards.

“On nights like this, more than ever, I see the potential for us to be a generation of doctors who come to the table, who contribute to a collective vision and who persuade those around us to stand up for health at the highest levels. I think that can be our legacy. Seeing everyone here tonight, I know that legacy is in good hands.”

JMO Manager of the Year

Sponsored by ASMOF (NSW) and HETI, the JMO Manager of the Year Award was presented by Dr Sara to Jessica Moore.

Described as sympathetic, fair, motivating, and endlessly supportive, Ms Moore is probably overdue to receive the JMO Manager of the Year award. In fact, it’s been suggested that the award should not be for ‘JMO Manager of the Year’ but for ‘JMO Manager of the decade.’

While she has recently moved to a senior administrative position, Ms Moore has been outstanding in her role as JMO Manager for Hunter New England Health Network. Under her excellent leadership, the JMO network has been able to tackle and develop issues of equity, transparency, support and education.

Being a JMO Manager is a complicated role that requires professionalism and communication – skills in which Ms Moore is extremely proficient. But the real reason she is so well liked and respected by the JMOs, RMOs, registrars and consultants of the Hunter New England Network is because she always makes time for people – no matter how big or how small their issue might be. As one of her former JMOs described her, “She is a ray of light, a presence of hope and positivity that is infective; she is a true motivator and an inspiration to us all.”

When asked during the presentation what her best advice for junior doctors is, she said, “Listen at orientation. It will save your life.”

Finalists for the JMO Manager of the Year Award included Dilani Bamford, Michelle McWhirter, Jean Melvin, and Julie Sillince.

Teacher of the Year

The second award of the evening, which was sponsored by ASMOF (NSW), was presented to Dr Bethan Richards.

Dr Bethan Richards worked as the Director of Physician Training at Royal Prince Alfred Hospital for five years. Earlier this year, she stepped down from this role, but she remains heavily involved in Basic Physician Training and is involved in Advanced Training in rheumatology, as well as medical student teaching with the University of Sydney. While Director,
Dr Richards headed a team which provided written and clinical training for basic physician trainees within the Royal Prince Alfred Network – now regarded as one of the best and largest training networks Australia-wide. In three of her five years as Director, one of her trainees won the college medal for the best overall performance in the RACP combined examination – a testament to her well designed teaching program.

Her mentorship provided trainees with career advice and professional qualities that went well beyond examination preparation. She has the rare ability to encourage people to perform and learn to their maximum ability. Many describe her as having a commitment to high quality and safe patient care, a commitment to kindness and compassion, and a commitment to work life balance. She remains a role model for many junior doctors.

In describing the fundamentals of teaching, Dr Richards said, “If you have a general love of what you do, it comes across to the students.”

An honourable mention in this category went to Alfred Massoud for demonstrating teaching excellence at a very early stage in his career. Dr Massoud’s nomination was wholly supported by the Medical Students of Hawkesbury Clinical School of the University of Notre Dame.

According to his students, what separates Dr Massoud from others is his unbridled and infectious level of enthusiasm and passion for medicine and teaching. His humility, leadership and professionalism is of the highest standard. It is noted that Dr Massoud went out of his way to add to not only his students’ learning, but his own learning, by regularly attending student medical curriculum lectures and tutorials.

Finalists in this category included Dr Robert Buckland, Dr Karen Greenlees, Dr Vincent Ho and A/Prof Joseph Suttie.

Registrar of the Year

Sponsored by NSW Health, the Registrar of the Year Award was presented to Dr Supuni Kapurubandara by NSW Health’s Deputy Secretary Karen Crawshaw.

Dr Supuni Kapurubandara is a senior registrar in Obstetrics and Gynaecology at Westmead Hospital. In her role as the OG Senior Registrar, Dr Kapurubandara coordinates and supports 28 OG trainees across Auburn, Blacktown, Dubbo, Coffs Harbour, and Westmead, in addition to 16 SRMOs and dozens of rotating JMOs. She was also elected as one of the national trainee representatives with the Australian Gynaecological Endoscopy Society, a role which promotes training in minimally invasive surgery and requires considerable out of hours commitment. Not only is she incredibly hardworking and dedicated, she is widely known for her surgical competence. Dr Kapurubandara is also noted for her compassion and kindness towards patients – she is good at explaining medical conditions and treatment options, giving patients time, and has often been found escorting patients to their destination. Her humility, thoughtfulness, and willingness to go the extra mile are but a few of the reasons she is this year’s Registrar of the Year.

In accepting her award, Dr Kapurubandara said she felt it was a privilege to work at Westmead.

“It’s very difficult to be uninspired there.”

This year, the Awards also recognised Dr Fedil Metti and Dr Matthew Winter with an honourable mention.

Dr Metti was noted for overcoming adversity. To escape persecution in Iraq, Dr Metti walked with his family, including his elderly parents, across Turkey, eventually making his way to Greece before immigrating to Australia.

Dr Metti has made a valuable contribution to hospitals in the South West Sydney Area Health District. He is described as resourceful, clinically astute, and a great mentor/teacher to junior staff. Dr Metti has worked extensively to establish a systematic educational training programme for the basic physician trainees sitting the FRACP written examinations, organised Masterclasses for the clinical examination candidates, and organised both the trial and formal FRACP clinical examination at Campbelltown Hospital.

Dr Matthew Winter was recognised for his consistent excellence. Dr Winter, a finalist several years running, has been nominated by a number of hospitals for his dedication and commitment to patient care and education. Dr Winter was awarded the George Snitzler prize for urological surgery last year. He was also awarded the American Urological Association prize for best registrar at the International Olympiad. Dr Winter was the first registrar at Royal North Shore to successfully implement a digital media tool enabling patients to better understand their procedures.

Other finalists for the Registrar of the Year include Dr Ruchit Agrawal, Dr Katherine Francis, Dr Ludi Ge, Dr Jenny Lauschke, Dr Brooke Short, Dr Hao Tran.

JMO of the Year

Sponsored by NSW Health, HETI and Cutcher&Neale, the JMO of the Year Award was presented by Stuart Chan to Dr Hannah Kempton.

Widely recognised as a dedicated leader, a highly effective mentor and a passionate advocate for empowering others, Dr Hannah Kempton has proven she is an exceptional doctor, with a gift for nurturing students, peers and colleagues. Currently working as a junior doctor in Wagga Wagga Rural Referral Hospital, Dr Kempton also serves as the Chair of the NSW HETI JMO forum. In this role, she has been an excellent advocate for workforce and training issues affecting JMOs in the Murrumbidgee Local Health District.

While she serves on numerous other committees and working groups, we’d like to highlight her work with the Eyes Wide Open Program, which she co-founded. This program is a series of seminars and mentoring programs run with the University of NSW to encourage high school students to consider rural healthcare careers.

In accepting her award, Dr Kempton said she was prompted to start the Eyes Wide Open Program by her own experience as a high school student.

“I was a rural high school student myself and I didn’t really have a mentor when I decided to study medicine. So that really inspired me to start this program.”

Her nominators indicated that Dr Kempton has performed exceedingly well as an intern from a clinical perspective and is highly respected by patients, fellow doctors, other hospital staff and the wider community.

Other finalists for the JMO of the year award include Dr Melissa Chin, Dr Rahul Gokarn, Dr Rose Haywood, Dr Eric Li, Dr Rashi Minocha, Dr Lauren Moses, Dr Sharwan Narayan and Dr Colby Stevenson.  dr.