Cloncurry’s own Cameron Hoare has been recognised as one of Queensland’s best and brightest rural doctors.
Dr Hoare was awarded the The Denis Lennox Medal for Outstanding Rural Registrar by the Rural Doctors Association of Queensland last weekend.
“I am delighted, proud and grateful to the team around me,” Dr Hoare said.
“I have to give special thanks to my partner Craig who has been so supportive. When we first started dating I told him I wanted to work out bush and he followed me out here when he knew nobody.”
Dr Hoare had his first taste of Cloncurry life when he worked at the Flinder’s Medical Centre as a fourth year medical student.
He loved the work so much he promised to return in his sixth year of study – a promise he kept.
“Out here, you get to practice proper medicine – it is cradle to grave care,” Dr Hoare said.
“You are able to establish strong relationships with your patients and also get to practice good emergency medicine.
“The lifestyle out here is also great. It is all the little things added up together which makes it such a good place to live and work,” he said.
Dr Hoare attained his general practitioner fellowship this year and has long term plans to keep serving the Cloncurry community.
He said at the end of his career he would like to “end up being a practice owner of Flinders Medical Centre and the medical superintendent of Cloncurry and Julia Creek Hospitals”.
Dr Hoare’s mentor Dr Bryan Connor served as a Cloncurry GP for more than a decade.
“Cameron is a thorough, caring and competent doctor who takes ownership of his patients’ health issues,” Dr Connor said.
“He is very compassionate and makes a great community doctor.
“It makes me incredibly proud to have left someone so competent to look after the Cloncurry community.”
Dr Hoare shared the prize of Outstanding Rural Registrar with Winton doctor, Bryce Nicol.
Dr Nicol graduated from James Cook University in 2012 and completed his prevocational years at Caboolture hospital, followed by emergency medicine training at Bundaberg.
He commenced as a senior medical officer provisional fellow at Winton in February 2016.
Dr Nicol has recently completed his fellowship requirements with the Australian College of Rural and Remote Medicine and has committed to stay in Winton to further develop his clinical and leadership role including supervision of registrars and students.