Dr Preston Cardelli - 2016 graduate
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Meet Preston Cardelli: medical student, loving son, and proud recipient of an AMA Queensland Foundation medical bursary.
Growing up in the small farming town of Mutchilba, money was an ever present worry for the Cardelli family but, as Preston says, receiving the Medical Bursary has allowed them “a breath of fresh air.”
The bursary has enabled Preston to buy text books, attend college, and participate in rural rotations in Cairns and Mt Isa. These rotations have only increased Preston’s passion for country living and health care, and allowed him to help out in remote communities like Urandangi, which battles issues like glue-sniffing and poor school attendance every day.
In 2014, Preston completed his Paediatric rotation at the Cairns Base Hospital as part of his 'Child and Adolescent Health' term, which also encompassed Obstetric and Gynecological placements.
When considering his future and career, Preston still holds strong aspirations for rural and remote medicine. Having had the opportunity to observe first-hand the disparities between rural and urban medical services and the real disadvantages faced by rural and remote communities when it comes to access to health care, he's keen to pursue a career as a General Practitioner in rural GP programs. However, he is also keenly interested in Cardiology and is hesitant to restrict his options just yet.
Preston says his 10 year plan includes being "‘well-established in a rural outpost or at least travelling rurally from a central hub in a desired speciality which would most benefit the region, and becoming an AMA member and a Foundation donor. The supporters today are idols I aspire to be like."
It's not every day that you get to be called an idol!