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Written by Claire Arment, MD
As an Audubon Society and Sierra Club member, I found the wildlife of Australia particularly interesting. It is possible to see platypus in the wild if you are careful, as well as cassowaries, emus, echidnas, wombats, various kinds of kangaroos and wallabies, crocodiles, and of course, the Tasmanian Devil. The bird life is beautiful and varies beyond my wildest expectations. There are many fine national parks throughout Australia, and special sites like Carnarvon Gorge with fern trees unchanged in 300 million years, and the Letchworth Fossil beds with Miocene species from the early Age of Mammals, 20 to 30 million years ago. And of course, no trip to Queensland would be complete without a dive off the Great Barrier Reef; local tours make this very easy to do and the dive is safe for you and the reef life.

As with all travel and work in new situations, it is important to be flexible. All my Australian accommodations were simple but adequate, and so were the cars I was given. Learning to drive on the left is much easier in rural communities than in cities, and is quite manageable. Food in Australia is much better than I'd anticipated. There are lots of fruits and vegetables, and Aussie cuisine has been positively influenced by the influx of immigrants from Asia. The Australian beers are the best in the world, and the wines are pretty good also.

This Australian experience came just before my retirement and was for me the perfect way to conclude my work in medicine. Had I known how interesting it would be, I'd have done this years ago. I recommend Global Medical's opportunities without reservation and only hope more doctors will have the enriching adventure I did.

Claire Arment, MD is a Family Physician from Vista, California, USA, who clearly loved her Australian locum tenens experience. She's now planning for an assignment closer to home in the U.S.