4 minute read
Interview with Pip Jeffery - Ashburton, New Zealand
As team lead at Ashburton’s rural imaging branch, Pip Jeffrey plays a vital role in delivering ultrasound services to her Canterbury community. A general sonographer, her varied case load spans obstetrics, vascular and small parts. Pip shares her insights into the rewards and realities of practising in a regional centre, from the strong sense of community connection to the challenges of working with limited resources and providing essential imaging access for patients across rural New Zealand.
What does your role as a sonographer in Ashburton involve day to day?
As a general sonographer, my day consists of scanning a varied worklist, including abdomens/ pelvis, obstetrics, vascular and small parts ultrasound. I love the variety of patients I see, from paediatrics to the elderly and everything in between – no 2 days are the same. I am also the team lead for our branch, so I oversee the effective running of our little rural branch, which provides ultrasound and X-ray services.
How does providing ultrasound in a regional centre like Ashburton differ from working in larger New Zealand cities?
Working in a regional centre like Ashburton involves working with a more close-knit team and smaller community, providing a strong sense of direct patient care and community connection. It also requires more autonomy and an adaptive approach to patient care, with fewer resources available compared to our city counterparts. We do not have a radiologist onsite nor an emergency department locally, so prompt patient care, open referrer communication and direct transfer of patients to tertiary centres when required, is paramount.
What are the main types of patients or cases you typically see in your community?
We image a range of outpatients for a variety of reasons, from acute to chronic conditions; for example, possible DVTs or ectopic pregnancy cases, abdominal pain, period complaints, routine obstetrics, to lumps and bumps, plus a lot of musculoskeletal injuries.
How important is access to local imaging for people living in rural Canterbury?
Ashburton is a large rural town that services a wide patient catchment from surrounding districts, with some patients travelling up to 100 km to our branch. Consequently, access to local imaging is critically important for our community to ensure prompt patient care, which in turn aids our local primary health providers in making quicker diagnoses and treatment. As a result, this reduces delayed diagnoses and associated costs, while minimising the necessity of travel for sick and vulnerable patients.
What opportunities or challenges do you encounter working in a regional health setting?
The benefit of working in a regional health setting is that it helps to build strong community relationships between us and referrers, as well as with patients. I enjoy the autonomy that goes with working regionally and the challenges of having to be more resourceful and versatile in my diagnostic approach.
Being able to provide an essential service like ultrasound in regional New Zealand is rewarding
Being a small team can sometimes prove challenging when it comes to staff sickness and staff shortages. Working regionally can sometimes feel isolating when working solo, with a lack of peer support and onsite radiologist input. Limited resources and equipment can also prove challenging from time to time.
From your perspective, what makes sonography rewarding in a place like Ashburton?
I love the work-life balance working locally provides. I can do the school run in the mornings and be home at a reasonable hour at night to spend quality time with the family. Ashburton is a beautiful place to live, surrounded by scenic landscapes to explore, with a range of outdoor activities on offer such as hiking, biking, skiing and water sports.
Being able to provide an essential service like ultrasound in regional New Zealand is rewarding; knowing we are helping to address disparities in access to healthcare is a great feeling. Patients are very appreciative of having scans offered locally, as it means less disruption to their personal and professional lives by reducing the need for longdistance travel. This is especially true for our elderly community, who may not have the means to travel or are too sick to travel.
