Dr Sharafat Malek - PhD Candidate in Rural Health

I am a full-time PhD student (started March 2006) with the Monash University School of Rural Health, based at the Moe Office. Broadly my research area is to explore the issues related with overseas-trained doctors at Australian medical workforce. Final goal of the research will be to formulate a curriculum where the group will get living support as loan to prepare for their registration exams. The expected outcome will be to employ this group (ready for work) to various still vacant rural GP or junior hospital positions for a certain period. Would provision of living support improve the exam performance of this group will be another interesting observation from this research.

I finished my MBBS with 1-year internship from Dhaka University in 1998. I came to Australia in mid-2000 to study Graduate Certificate in Public Health at University of Wollongong. I completed my Master of Public Health with a major project on Bangladeshi migrant's health in 2002 from UNSW (A collaborative project with Parramatta Migrant Resource Centre).

I obtained Permanent Residence in 2003. I worked as a research assistant from March'04 to Dec'05 at School of Rural Health, Dubbo Campus under Prof. Rick McLean (Assoc Dean & Head, SRH-USyd).

Academic Qualifications

• MBBS with 1-yr internship ( Dhaka University, Bangladesh)
• Grad Cert in Public Health ( Wollongong University)
• Master of Public Health ( University of New South Wales)
• PhD Candidate ( Monash University)

Awards

• 1984 Achieved Government Scholarship being a winner at 'Yr-8 interschool talent competition'
• 1987 Sir Mosharraf Hossain Khan Gold Medal for Secondary School Certificate result
• 2005 Faculty Scholarship (PhD)- Faculty of Medicine, Nursing and Health Sciences, Monash University
• 2005 Departmental Scholarship (PhD)- School of Rural Health, Monash University

Organisational Affiliations

• Member of Public Health Association of Australia
• Member of Australian Doctors Trained Overseas Association
• Member of Bangladeshi Doctors Association of Victoria
• Member of UNSW Alumni Association
• Registered member of Bangladesh Medical and Dental Council
• Member of Sher-e-Bangla Medical College Alumni Association, Bangladesh
• Accredited member of National Association of Translators and Interpreters in Australia

Current Supervisor

Dr Janice Chesters (School of Rural Health, Monash University)

Research interests

• Overseas-trained Doctors in Australia
• Rural Medical Workforce
• Multicultural Rural Health
• Migrant health

Details of Thesis

Working title of PhD thesis:

"Permanent resident overseas-trained doctors in Australia: an assessment of their social and educational experiences".

Master thesis:

An Assessment of Health Status of Bangladeshi Migrants living in Sydney - Master thesis 2002, University of New South Wales.

A self-health assessment postal questionnaire survey on all Bangladeshi migrants registered with BHP Migrant Resource Centre and living within the localities of Baulkam Hills, Holroyd or Parramatta city council at the time of study.

Selected Publications

Letter to Editor

• Malek, S., 2006 (May 23), 'Have your say'- Response to Chloe Rothery's article 'Doctor Shortage', [Letter] Bunbury Mail, online: http://bunbury.yourguide.com.au/detailops.asp?class=your+say&opinion_id=116706

• Malek, S. Would ‘providing living support as loan for exam preps’ be one of the Solutions’? – Response to Julie Sladden’s ‘Overseas doctors’ health’,BMJ Career Focus 2006; 332:(7532)8

• Malek, S., 2006 (July 13), Would ‘Retraining of Australian resident overseas doctors’ be an aid to rural workforce shortage’? – Response to Julie Sladden’s ‘Overseas doctors’ health’, BMJ CareerFocus 2006; 332:(7532)8. Available at: http://careerfocus.bmjjournals.com/cgi/content/full/332/7532/8

• Malek, S., 2006 (July 27), ‘Communicating with the hospital registrars….’ – Response to Dev Srivastava’s ‘Communicating with the on-call consultant’, BMJ CareerFocus 2006; 332:(7532)8. Available at: http://careerfocus.bmj.com/cgi/eletters/332/7550/189-a

Journal Articles

• McLean, R., Malek, S., Corish, J., Sienkiewicz, G, 2006, ‘Utilisation and clinical efficacy of echocardiography in a regional hospital’, Aust J Rural Health, vol 14, pp 72-78.

• Malek, S., McLean, R and Webster, E., 2007 Feb, "Analysis of recording and coding of smoking history for patients admitted to a regional hospital", Aust J Rural Health, vol 15, no 1, pp 65-66(2).

• Malek, S, 2003, ‘Bangladeshi migrants living in Sydney’, Intouch Newsletter- Public Health Association of Australia, vol 20, no 1, page 7.

• Bhuiyan, S., Haque, M.M., Malek, S., Hasan, R., 1997, ‘Foreign bodies in the small intestine of a five-year-old girl: A Case Report’, Journal of Teachers’ Association of SBMCH, vol 8, no 19, pp 515-517.