Caitlyn Blewett wants to become a family doctor, but not just the same kind one may think of, and now she's been recognized for her work in winning the 2019 Rising Star of Health Service Award.
Her passion is on rural medicine, specifically in small towns.
She's currently a second-year medical student and her true area of work became clear to her while she worked in Haida Gwaii, the unceded traditional territory of the Haida people.
“My connection to Haida Gwaii grew very quickly,” Blewett says in a news release. “One of the things that I really love about working in smaller communities is that while there aren’t a lot of people, there are, in my experience, enough people who are really passionate about making the community better and making it work, and making sure that it has everything that all of the people in it need.”
Blewett made the move from Vancouver to Haida Gwaii and knew within one month that it was where she wanted to be.
“The people I met just threw open arms out to anything you wanted to do and anything you were interested in being a part of," she adds. "Within the first month, I had joined the fire department! They’re just so excited to have people with energy and excitement who want to live in the community and who want to make it work. I think this kind of attitude is a large part of what keeps me in northern B.C., and what makes me want to live and work here for the rest of my life. I definitely applied to medicine in hopes of pursuing rural family practice.”
The 2019 Rising Star of Health Service Award recognizes outstanding contributions made to health care in the north.
The $5,000 award is available through the Northern Medical Programs Trust, which was established in 2002 to help support health-care student education and recruitment initiatives in the North.
Blewett's previous work includes coordinating a large research and community engagement project focused on child/youth mental health and substance use, developing wellness forums, providing community support as a volunteer firefighter, working with Elders to improve quality of life for Indigenous communities, and serving as a board member with the Haida Gwaii Islands Wellness Society.
She also holds a Masters of Public Health.
“I have become very passionate about rural health services and when I think about my future career as a family doctor, I’m not just focused on things like how can I get enough ER training or maternity training," she adds. "It’s also about where do I want to go home to, what kind of services does that community need, and how do I make sure that they can get those services in town rather than having to fly to Vancouver or take an eight-hour ferry to Prince Rupert, for example.”
This past spring, the B.C. Rural Health Conference confirmed her interest in rural medicine and healthcare improvement.
“Connecting with rural family doctors at the conference who have been doing this for so long and just getting to see how much they can change the work that they are doing," Blewett says. "Both to suit their communities and to suit what they and their families need, it’s really heartening. Everyone is so supportive and excited about people who want to try different things."
