Dr Vid Paheerathan
An incredible journey to becoming a rural doctor
From outer space to a rural town
Vid’s story has one vital element, a passion for helping people and improving health outcomes for rural and remote communities.
Rural Doctors Foundation is privileged to be part of his journey. Through our funding of programs delivered by RDAQ, Rural Doctors Foundation provided opportunities for this young student to explore a rural medical career. All while receiving both financial and emotional support. Vid was grateful for this support and was generous in his time to raise funds for Rural Doctors Foundation – in what could only be described with the enthusiasm and boundless energy that is Vid.
Dr Vidhushan (Vid) Paheerathan never actually wanted to be a doctor. He was going to be an astronaut. But his childhood dream for space travel was dashed when he discovered he needed glasses and his eyesight wouldn’t pass NASA’s lofty standards.
His family relocated to Sydney when he was 10 years old. Vid set his (slightly diminished) sights on being a vet. He held onto that vision up until his senior years at high school. His passion for helping animals led him on a conservation mission for leatherback sea turtles in Costa Rica. But, as fate would have it, a member of the conservation team fell ill. Vid was shocked to discover the local doctor only visited once a fortnight and they put the patient on the back of a ute to seek medical treatment, an option not available to the locals.
"There were people living in rural communities who had poorer access to healthcare than even animals in cities. This was very shocking to me".
“I went there wanting to be a vet, idolising Doctor Chris Brown the Bondi Vet, and I came back wanting to do something in the human health field,” Vid said. “I felt that animals were amazing and needed to be cared for, but there were humans in rural communities everywhere who had poorer access to healthcare than even animals did in cities. Which was very shocking to me.
“I wondered how a migrant living in Sydney, could have better healthcare than the traditional custodians of the land and the people living and working in rural and remote areas who keep the country running.”
He didn’t think he was ‘smart enough’ to be a doctor so he decided to become a physio. Then, a couple of years into his degree at JCU in Townsville, he realised his true calling was to be a rural doctor. He switched to medicine, completed placements in Palm Island, Collinsville, Broome, Thursday Island and Emerald.
At his first RDAQ conference in 2018 he was sponsored by rural legend Dr Chester Wilson who became his medical mentor and friend.
His love of all things rural grew and Vid is now enjoying being a Rural Generalist Pathway intern doing his placement at Mt Isa Hospital.
Rural Doctors Foundation is proud to be part of his story – even if in a small way!
Other rural heroes like Vid
Dr Katie Chang
Dr Katie Chang is a rural doctor based in Western Queensland. With her husband, Paul, they made the brave decision to leave the public health system and set up their own private practice in Charleville.
Dr Cam Hollows
Dr Cam Hollows is used to responding to emergencies, having experienced the Lismore floods first hand. Rural Doctors Foundation equipped Cam with the right equipment to better respond in the future.
Dr Sue Masel
Dr Sue Masel has lived and worked in Goondiwindi in western Queensland for 25 years. She works as a rural GP and is incredibly connected to the town
