How the experiences of country medical students is breaking down barriers for rural women to become doctors
Boots to Scrubs is an innovative new program launched by the Australian Medical Students Association (AMSA), to help young women from regional areas across Australia gain significant and targeted assistance to pursue a career as a rural doctor.
Founded in 2023 and fueled by their shared experiences of growing up in rural communities with a lack of female role models, Chloe Campbell and Georgia Goodhew developed ‘Boots to Scrubs’; a concept centred around engagement and mentorship with rural women, school communities and hospital networks Australia wide. Within both of their hometowns, connecting to a female role model was never on the cards for these girls, with Georgia stating “Growing up here gave me a bitter taste of what it’s like to have limited access to female medical role models. There was never anyone above me to provide the support or guidance I needed to consider a career as a female doctor”. Boots to Scrubs has developed a unique mentorship program which aims to break down this barrier for the next generation of young women entering their medical school journey. The program connects first year medical students with an inspiring female doctor who can help nurture their passion for rural health, offer tools to improve skill development, build confidence, ease exam stress and help navigate their academic and professional life.
The success of 2023 has led to us expanding the team and adding four highly accomplished women to the team, all with a passion for supporting women in the bush. Briony Littlejohns from University of Newcastle, Bridget Gaul from The Australian National University, Ulyana Kondratova from Monash university and Katie long from Charles Sturt University.
In 2024, Boot to Scrubs has significantly thrived with the team announcing the launch of the inaugural “Boots to Scrubs Rural Women in Medicine Scholarship”. The scholarship aims to empower women from rural Australia who have commenced their first year of medical studies at any accredited Australian medical school and provides a financial boost of over $7.5k. The inaugural scholarship is proudly sponsored by Dr Vennassa Wong and her enterprise SMWEA, a business model dedicated to delivering essential medical services and cultural safety training in rural and remote areas of Australia. Dr Wong offers an intimate look into the remarkable challenges and experiences of being a doctor in rural NSW through her instagram @ur_outbackdoc.
Each scholarship winner will also receive a $50 Birdsnest voucher to help cover the cost of professional placement attire. “As a regionally based business that employs over 150 locals, most of which are women, Birdsnest understands the power of women and connection in rural communities. We value empowering women within our team and our extended community, which is why we are so honoured to support the next generation of female rural doctors.”
The process of applying to medical school is often overwhelming for many applicants, with each university offering diverse pathways and varying application processes to entering medicine. “It hits home for me - the challenges and lack of information surrounding how to enter the medical field, and what life in it actually looks like. '' says Georgia, “The information is available, but you have to go looking for it, and know where to look''. At Boots to Scrubs we have collated all the information from each medical school in Australia and produced a highly valuable resource available on our websites and across our social media. We have also developed detailed study guides about the UCAT/GAMSAT entrance exams, including our team’s best tips! “The ultimate goal is to ease the often-intimidating application process and to act as that catalyst for all other aspiring female country doctors out there.”
“As someone who grew up in Narrabri, rural NSW, I’ve always believed in the power of community and the resilience of rural women” Vice Chair Georgia shared. “The launch of our Boots to Scrubs scholarship represents not just new opportunities, but provides hope for aspiring female doctors just like myself. Already we have touched the lives of so many female medical students, and I can’t wait to follow along on the journey of our 2024 scholarship recipients”.
“It is a surreal feeling to see this project succeed and to be able to now offer our first scholarship” Chair of Boots to Scrubs, Chloe Campbell quoted. “We built this project based on our own experiences and challenges of pursuing a career in medicine. Hearing directly from students we have engaged with about their stories and how they are now inspired and feel supported to pursue medicine is truly so rewarding. I cannot wait to see the journey of our scholarship recipient, I think all of us at Boots to Scrubs and AMSA will be immensely proud to be part of their journey in medicine”.
For the Future of Boots to Scrubs the sky's the limit! We are currently working towards expanding our partnerships and funding opportunities to help grow our scholarship program and educational resources. If you would be interested in partnering with us or sponsoring a scholarship please reach out to Chloe or Georgia.
Due to the mass number of applicants we have received this year already, we would love to expand our mentorship program. If you or any doctor would like to get involved in mentoring the next generation of female doctors, please reach out to Georgia who can provide you with all the information you need.
To learn more about ‘Boots to Scrubs’ go to our website or follow us on instagram or facebook @Bootstoscrubs.
Chloe Campbell
2024 Chair 'Boots to Scrubs'
Australian Medical Students' Association
Preferred pronouns: She/her
M +61 478 608 450
E chloe.campbell@bootstoscrubs.com
Georgia Goodhew
2024 Boots to Scrubs Vice Chair
AMSA Rep | Charles Sturt University
Preferred pronouns: she/her
M: +61 455 952 084 | E: georgia.goodhew@bootstoscrubs.com
