Next generation: Pathum Rodrigo, Mandhree Ekanayake, Anjali Ranaweera, Sayuri Hettiarachchi and Courtney Bruce are excited to be starting their internship year. Photos: Shannon Colee
Photo by
Shannon Colee
Mandhree Ekanayake has made a home in Echuca.
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Dr Ekanayake spent her final two years of medical school at Echuca Regional Health and has now accepted an internship at the hospital.
“I absolutely loved the hospital and all of the staff and the town itself,” she said.
“I’ve grown up in the country, so finding another country town that so perfectly suits my lifestyle was really lucky.
“I’ve always wanted to do rural medicine. I’ve just struggled to find where, because all country towns are beautiful and have their own selling point, but Echuca is just perfect in my eyes.”
Dr Ekanayake is one of five new interns the hospital has taken on. She will be joined by Sayuri Hettiarachchi, Courtney Bruce, Pathum Rodrigo and Anjali Ranaweera.
The interns will rotate through the specialist areas of general medicine, general surgery, emergency, rehabilitation and general practice during their time at the hospital.
As part of their training, Courtney Bruce, Sayuri Hettiarachchi, Mandhree Ekanayake, Pathum Rodrigo and Anjali Ranaweera and Sayuri Hettiarachchi get to use mechanical patients.
Photo by
Shannon Colee
Dr Ekanayake said her time at ERH had been invaluable.
“It’s always been very hands-on with lots of incredible experiences. You get to be in the theatre doing surgeries alongside surgeons,” she said.
“You can talk to your consultant directly and get that guidance and expertise ... you pick up skills that you may not be exposed to in your first year of internship, but you get to have them right off the get go here.”
Working in and being part of a regional town has always been the goal for Dr Ekanayake.
“(The staff members at ERH) are able to be so compassionate towards their patients because they understand the struggle of living in a country town,” she said.
“They understand the hardships of socially living in a country town and what access to healthcare means.
“I’ve always wanted to treat a community, not a person. So knowing that you are part of that whole journey and you get to live and see what you’re dealing with has been really appealing to me.”
Dr Rodrigo arrived with his partner, fellow intern Anjali, and said his time at the hospital so far had been incredible.
“I didn’t realise how supportive it would be. Everyone was so nice. They told us how to do everything and then even if you got anything wrong, they just corrected us,” he said.
“(Anjali and I) both wanted to work together regionally. I really love the regional environment, the peacefulness and the people here.
“Everyone knows everyone and that's really lovely.”
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