Curtin Medical School alumnus Jake O’Brien at his graduation.
Over the last 10 years, I’ve spent more days in hospitals than I’ve had hot dinners.
My name is Dr Jake O’Brien – I’m a Medical Doctor and person living with type 1 diabetes. I’ve recently graduated from Curtin University with a Bachelor of Medicine and Bachelor of Surgery, but this is only a drop in the ocean of my story.
I was diagnosed with type 1 diabetes almost nine years ago – a day I remember as if it were just yesterday. It was the long weekend in June, and I was home from boarding school with my family. I was extremely fatigued, had lost weight, had an unquenchable thirst, and was extremely hungry. Nothing was helping to control my symptoms and it was my Mum’s nursing intuition that recognised something wasn’t quite right.
Type 1 Diabetes is an autoimmune condition affecting over 130,000 people in Australia, in which the immune system attacks the pancreas, resulting in an inability of the body to produce insulin. Insulin is essential in converting the food we eat into energy for every cell in the body, and without it, we would die.
Living with diabetes is tough. It’s a 24/7 job no one chooses, with no pay and certainly no breaks. Every day it demands your attention, your decision-making, and most importantly an intricate understanding of more than 42 (known) factors that influence blood glucose. It’s exhausting!
My journey of living with diabetes is something I took in my stride early on, accepting there’s no alternative. I was blessed to have such a supportive team who instilled in me the ability to not let diabetes take control of my life. The team at Princess Margaret Hospital, now known as Perth Children’s Hospital, enabled me to live my life, with diabetes coming second. I was inspired by the way I was treated as a person living with a condition, rather than the condition. I wanted to give back to others, in the same way I had been supported when I was first diagnosed.
I applied for Curtin Medical School and beyond my wildest dreams was accepted upon graduating high school. I wanted to become just like the Doctors who took care of me in my hour of need.
In my final year of Medical School, I undertook my elective placement at Perth Children’s Hospital in the Endocrinology and Diabetes department – working with the same team who gave me my diagnosis eight years prior. Standing on the other side of the bed with the medical team, being involved in those early discussions with patients and their families, was something even now I find difficult to articulate. Genuine empathy for those people is the best way to describe it.
Every person’s journey with diabetes is unique, but it’s a privilege to sit with those families and be able to say, ‘I know exactly what this feeling is like, and I know how difficult it is right now, but I promise you can live a normal life just like everyone else.’ It’s special to have these conversations and I feel fortunate to be where I am today.
Since graduating, I’ve started working as a Doctor at Royal Perth Hospital. Every day I can make a difference in the lives of people in their hour of need, just as those dedicated Doctors had made in mine. It’s such a special profession and something I continually remind myself of each day. I know my diabetes journey has played a pivotal role in who I am today, and the Doctor I am.
Wherever my career takes me, I know my experience living with diabetes has given me a powerful perspective on the importance of humanity in Medicine.
Jake O’Brien, Medical Doctor at Royal Perth Hospital and Chair of Type 1 Diabetes Collective at PDC Health Hub by Perth Diabetes Care.
Graduating from Curtin in February 2024 with a Bachelor of Medicine and a Bachelor of Surgery, Jake’s passion to help people, particularly those living with chronic illness, has led him to pursue a career in Medicine. Through his diagnosis with type-one diabetes, Jake became empowered to achieve his dream of becoming a Medical Doctor to help others living with similar conditions thrive and continuously prove that diabetes is no obstacle. Not one to sit back and relax, Jake is also completing his pilot certificate with Recreational Aviation Australia.
