Congratulations Dr Ollapallil Jacob

Dr Ollapallil Jacob nominated for 2021 Senior Australian of the Year

Dr Ollapallil Jacob was recently one of four Northern Territorians to be nominated for the 2021 Senior Australian of the Year. Of these four nominees, one will go through to national judging. “I only found out when they called saying that I’d been nominated for the Northern Territory (NT). It was a bit of a surprise to me – I was not expecting anything like this,” Dr Jacob told Surgical News. A general surgeon in Alice Springs for more than 20 years, Dr Jacob provides elective and emergency care – including Neurosurgery and thoracic surgery – for central Australia residents. He has led the understanding of surgical management in a range of areas, including acute pancreatitis, for which local survival rates are among the best in the world. His adaptive surgical style has also significantly reduced the number of amputations for Indigenous people. He advocates for continual improvement in healthcare services. “We are working tirelessly with the NT Government to address the challenges we face,” Dr Jacob said. “To some extent we have already been successful, in terms of introducing alcohol-related harm minimisation policy, domestic and family violence policy and a speed limit in NT.” Dr Jacob says he had already seen the positive effects of liquor laws in the reduction of patients presenting with alcohol-related medical issues.

His community work has shone a spotlight on other public health issues and reduced rollover car accidents and skin infection rates. He is an inspiring educator and mentor for junior doctors and medical students at the Flinders University Rural Clinical School. “The main message I’d like to communicate, especially to young surgeons and Trainees, is that Alice Springs is now recognised as an excellent hospital for training in surgical specialties, especially General Surgery.” Of his work in this area he said, “We practise true General Surgery in that our spectrum is very broad.” Dr Jacob is passionate about the rights of patients and ensuring their voices are heard. He has received numerous local and national honours for his contribution, including the inaugural Royal College of Surgeons Indigenous Award in 2015. “Access to good health care and surgery is a basic human right,” said Dr Jacob. “I’m just an ordinary surgeon working in Alice Springs trying to provide surgical services to people across the barriers of distance and culture.”  For more information go to: australianoftheyear.org.au

Our thanks to Mr Andrew James Cowle and family Our thanks to the late Mr Andrew James Cowle and his family If you would like are considering creating a living legacy or for their extraordinary generosity. Mr Cowle recently passed leaving a gift in your Will, please contact Jessica Redwood, the away and left half his estate to the Foundation for Surgery and Manager of the Foundation for Surgery by phoning +61 3 9249 the Royal Australasian College of Surgeons to support a Global 1110 or by visiting foundation@surgeons.org. Health project. Although Mr Cowle was not a member of the College, he deeply appreciated the importance of accessible safe and quality surgical care.