Professor Kelvin Kong has spoken about the importance of the AMA’s Indigenous Medical Scholarship before applications for this year’s round close.
Australia’s first Indigenous surgeon has urged more organisations to show their support for initiatives that help improve health outcomes for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities.
Professor Kelvin Kong, the , highlighted the importance of programs like the .
Professor Kong was one of the first scholarship recipients in 1997 and said not only did it provide crucial financial assistance during his medical studies at the University of NSW, it also provided significant personal motivation to push himself forward.
“When I was growing up, medicine was not even an option to anyone in our family. You were lucky enough to get through schooling, let alone think about university,” he said.
“The scholarship was a reminder for me that I deserved to be in that place, and to have that kind of support and encouragement was really important, as it enabled me to dream big.”
Professor Kong, a Worimi man, said receiving the scholarship also made him realise the importance of organisations such as the AMA showing leadership and driving change.
“People probably don’t realise the far-reaching consequences of the support of the AMA and their members in this space,” he said.
“Some people think that simply speaking up in support of First Nations Australians won’t do anything, when in actual fact, simply saying ‘this is something we believe in and this is something that’s important to us makes a huge difference.”
Professor Kong now works as one of the country’s foremost head and neck surgeons and has dedicated his career to the treatment and early intervention of chronic otitis media, which disproportionately affects Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children.
Applications for the 2024 AMA Indigenous Medical Scholarship close on Wednesday, January 31, and Professor Kong has encouraged Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander medical students to apply now.
“When you have that passion and drive, you can have those dreams of being whatever you want to be – and don’t let anyone tell you otherwise,” he said.
