The University of Queensland (UQ) Medical School is celebrating eight graduating Doctor of Medicine students from the Bundaberg Regional Clinical Unit, who will embark on their journey as junior doctors.
Amongst the sea of smiling faces is Dr Klowie Stewart, who started life on a cattle farm on the Sunshine Coast and has chosen to stay regionally, interning with the Wide Bay Hospital and Health Service in Bundaberg under the Queensland Rural Generalist Pathway (QRGP) in 2025.
While Klowie had always had a great love of science, it wasn’t until a serious horse training accident in 2015 led her to consider medicine.
“For years I trained horses and did odd jobs; working the cattle farm, I went to TAFE and learned commercial cooking and worked in various restaurants and even tried my hand as a veterinary assistant,” Dr Stewart said.
“During my time in hospital after my accident, I found myself enjoying the intricacies of medicine and seriously thinking that I would love to help people the same way so many wonderful medical professionals helped me.”
Fast forward to 2022 when Klowie, then a second-year medical school at UQ made the decision to preference Bundaberg for her third-year studies.
“Following all the craziness that happened during Covid-19 and living in Brisbane, my partner and I were looking for a big change and so we threw caution to the wind and moved our little family to Bundaberg,” she said.
Klowie ended up completing her final 2 years of medical school with the Bundaberg Regional Clinical Unit (RCU).
“We have gained some amazing friends and spend our free time relaxing at the beach, exploring local hiking spots, fishing in the Burnett River and discovering the deep heritage of the area,” she said.
“The hospital teams are much smaller and as a student you get significant one-on-one time with patients and doctors.
“I felt like a valuable member of the team on each rotation and have become both a better juniordoctor and person.
“I have felt so incredibly supported in my studies and career progression by the wonderful ladies at the RCU and my supervising doctors and allied health staff at the hospitals and GP practices.”
Head of Bundaberg RCU, Dr Gina Watkins says it’s been a pleasure to be part the student’s medical education and congratulates them on graduation.
“While we will miss the connections we’ve made with our students; we are so pleased to see them graduate and fulfil their goals of becoming doctors,” Dr Watkins said.
“We look forward to seeing Klowie interning in Bundaberg next year and know that she will be a wonderful mentor to our incoming Regional Medical Pathway students.”
Launched in 2022, the Central Queensland Wide Bay Regional Medical Pathway (RMP), a partnership forged between UQ, CQUniversity, and the Central Queensland and Wide Bay Hospital and Health Services, enables university students to complete all their undergraduate and postgraduate studies and practical training in the Central Queensland and Wide Bay regions.
In 2025, there will be around 150 students studying across all seven years of the RMP based in the Wide Bay region.
