Public Health has always been an important part of a functioning society. Now more than ever, Public Health measures are helping to protect the health and safety of Australians - and the world at large.
Today, as part of our series on career mentors in Public Health, we’re shining a light on DR KUDZAI KANHUTU - Infectious Diseases Doctor, Telehealth Clinical Lead and Deputy Chief Medical Information Officer at the Royal Melbourne Hospital in Victoria.
As a self-confessed health tech nerd, Dr Kudzai Kanhutu also currently sits on the board of the Health Informatics Society Australia and is the clinical reference lead for the Australian Digital Health Agency.
Guest Blog by Dr Kudzai Kanhutu
“My healthcare leadership journey began at a vaccination clinic in the outskirts of Harare, Zimbabwe.
My aunt was a nurse in charge; tasked with ensuring that all the local kids were up to date with their immunisations. Each day she saw a steady stream of mums, babies, toddlers and the occasional gangly teen trying to act cool!
My cousin, reigning under 10’s sprint queen, would patrol the clinic entrance ready to pounce on any would-be escapees! Notoriously chatty, it was my job to play the part of the vaccine evangelist - cheerfully extolling the personal and public health benefits of vaccination.
My Aunt saw leadership potential in my 8-year-old self and I intend to honour that.
Since qualifying as a doctor I have worked in sexual health clinics, with the refugee and migrant community, promoting science careers for girls and now in the burgeoning world of health technology. In all these contexts the importance of gender-aware decision making is front of mind.
Indeed, my eventual decision to become an infectious diseases specialist was driven by the pained realisation that individual outcomes from the HIV pandemic were deeply gendered. This has everything to do with structural injustice and nothing to do with the virus.”
In 2017 Dr Kudzai Kanhutu was jointly awarded the Victorian Public Healthcare Award for excellence in Culturally and Linguistically Diverse care.
A diverse and impactful career pathway
“Every day is a little bit different! But I have 4 main jobs:
1) Infectious Diseases / Public Health Doctor
2) Hospital in the Home Doctor
3) Health IT Consultant
3) Board Director
So some days I might be out on the road doing nursing home visits, seeing patients in the clinic or chatting with the IT team about things we'd like to improve with our electronic medical record system.”
Ready to tackle the COVID-19 pandemic
With a love of learning and helping people stay healthy, Dr. Kanhutu is “curiously fired up and optimistic” about the current state of the world. “A challenge of this magnitude forces us to re-imagine and refocus our energies on what really matters most to us.”
Dr. Kudzai Kanhutu’s advice for young women interested in a career in Public Health
Get some qualifications in public health. This doesn't have to be a Masters of Public Health. It might be a relevant qualification in community health for example. Through that education process, you will start to get an understanding of what area of public health really interests you most.