Senior doctor hails rewarding 21-year career in cardiology

When Associate Professor Raibhan Yadav moved to Townsville for work, he planned to stay for 12 months. Now, 21 years later Dr Yadav is into his 13th year of Director of Cardiology at Townsville University Hospital and said he has seen the department go from strength to strength.

"We started off with a touch under three cardiologists and were primarily an interventional unit that specialised in angioplasty, which is a procedure used to open blocked coronary arteries caused by coronary artery disease," Dr Yadav said.

"Now, we have almost nine cardiologists and we're a regional tertiary hub that services all aspects of cardiology, including echocardiograms, electrophysiology (which treats the electrical activities of the heart), heart failure, interventional and structural heart disease.

"We have the only cardiac surgical service in the north and practice a range of procedures not otherwise possible, so as a result the medical trainees, or cardiologists of tomorrow, get to experience a great breadth of training that prepares them for the future."

When it comes to the most rewarding part of Dr Yadav’s 21-year career with Townsville University Hospital, he said it was hard to choose a singular aspect.

"Growth of the cardiology service provided in Mount Isa and outreach to the Indigenous communities on Palm Island and north west Queensland would be some of the most rewarding aspects of my job," Dr Yadav said.

"A few of our own medical trainees have also come back to Townsville University Hospital to work as consultants and seeing their professional and personal growth has been very rewarding."

In addition to the facilities, Dr Yadav said the lifestyle had also captured him from the start.

"Townsville is a laidback place that allows you to achieve the highest standards of your profession in a non-metro centre," Dr Yadav said.

"There's good schools for the kids, very little commuting time and ease of travel which has allowed many of our cardiologists to focus on their professional goals while maximising family time.

"With James Cook University around the corner, those interested in an academic career have also found working here a fulfilling endeavour and when it comes to the weekend, you've got the Great Barrier Reef with diving opportunities and places like Magnetic Island that offer lifestyle opportunities only minutes away.

"I wouldn't want to be anywhere else."

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