Jordan Griffiths

Clinical Science to Medical — education story

From an early age, Jordan Griffiths aspired to work in healthcare, but she wasn’t completely sure medicine was the right career. So she first completed a Bachelor of Clinical Science at Macquarie, a pathway to medical studies, before enrolling for a full medical degree.

During her undergraduate degree, Jordan had the opportunity to go into hospitals and find out what the career was like. “Especially speaking to women and hearing how they had their families and also felt fulfilled in their careers, made me set on becoming a doctor.”

She was delighted when she was accepted into the inaugural MQ Health Doctor of Medicine (MD) cohort. Now in her second year, she is already going into operating theatre, on hospital ward rounds and speaking to patients, spending a minimum of eight hours a week in the Macquarie University Hospital.

Jordan was excited to have the opportunity to visit Hyderabad in India to experience work in the country’s first corporate hospital. The hospital has 470 beds and clinics that include heart disease, cancer, joints and renal diseases as well as eye and cosmetic surgery.

Her dream is to become a pediatrician. “I got to do a placement in ENT (Ear, Nose and Throat) and we saw kids under the age of eight getting grommets in their ears or getting their tonsils out.

“And when they were put to sleep it was very emotional. I just loved the whole experience of working with them and that confirmed to me that’s what I want to do.

“My parents didn’t seem to get a lot of joy out of their jobs, so I wanted to find something that I could really dedicate my life to and get a lot of fulfilment from. Working in healthcare is a privilege, to genuinely make a difference to someone’s life is my main motivator.”