Women add immense value to health

It’s an impressive statistic, celebrated by Caboolture Hospital Emergency Medical Director Dr Michelle Davison, who strongly believes women have a key role in the delivery of kind and compassionate patient care.

“Women add immense value to health policy – increased productivity, maximising participation in the workforce and a creating a healthier professional culture,” Dr Davison said.

Dr Davison has a proud 25-year medical career with Queensland Health. She has a Bachelor of Medicine and completed a fellowship with the Australian College of Emergency Medicine (FACEM), with further post-graduate qualifications in paediatric emergency medicine, healthcare simulation and clinical re-design.

She is also Executive Director of the Metro North Clinical Stream for Emergency Medicine. This means she works with a network of colleagues from emergency departments across Metro North (such as RBWH, TPCH and Redcliffe) to coordinate clinical improvements and education.

Caboolture Hospital is a very busy emergency department with an average of 195 patients each day. It also has a paediatric emergency department with dedicated staff – separate to the main adult ED – which is great for local families.

“I supervise a few hundred medical staff, from interns to senior staff specialists, with many years of experience across all those sites,” Dr Davison said.

“I’m so proud that 47 per cent of those doctors at CKW and the satellite health clinics are women.

“The percentage of women in senior executive roles for Caboolture, Woodford, Kilcoy and Bribie Island is an impressive 69 per cent.

“If you include all staff across Caboolture Hospital, Kilcoy Hospital, Woodford Corrections Health and the satellite clinics at Caboolture and Bribie Island, it rises again to 78 per cent women, of which I’m very proud to be a part.

“International Women’s Day is always a great way to celebrate the positive workplace where everyone can succeed and maximise their own individual potential.

“I hope everyone found a way to recognise the achievements and acts of courage shown by women around the world – as well as in our own, local networks.”

Dr Davison said a career in health was a great option for women of all ages and backgrounds.

“There are so many great opportunities in health for women – medical, nursing, allied health, administrative, operations – and so many more,” Dr Davison said.

“Some medical careers such as medicine require university qualifications and some post graduate study over many years.

“However, we also have many non-clinical roles that may not require vast experience or qualifications.

“We also have several options for school students interested in a career in health, including traineeships and apprenticeships.”

For more details, find the ‘careers’ link on the Caboolture Hospital website.