A Curtin medical school graduate is bound for Oxford University in the UK after winning a prestigious \u2018Australia at Large\u2019 Rhodes Scholarship to study the use of digital technology to improve health services in rural and remote areas of Australia.<\/p>\n
Dr James Leigh, aged 23, was part of the first graduating cohort of Curtin\u2019s medical school and will begin his studies at Oxford next September, where he plans to do a Master of Science in Applied Digital Health.<\/p>\n
A junior doctor currently based at Fiona Stanley Hospital in Perth, Dr Leigh\u2019s studies at Oxford will include the potential of digital health technology to reduce the length of hospital stays and thereby the isolation of rural patients in postoperative care.<\/p>\n
Curtin University Vice-Chancellor Professor Harlene Hayne congratulated Dr Leigh on receiving the prestigious scholarship, which is awarded to only the elite of Australian graduates to study at one of the world\u2019s finest universities.<\/p>\n
\u201cDr Leigh is a truly worthy recipient of the Rhodes Scholarship and this latest achievement continues a stellar start to his career, including being awarded a Don Watts High Achiever Scholarship in 2021 and Global Voices WHA Scholarship in 2019,\u201d Professor Hayne said.<\/p>\n
\u201cThrough his Global Voices scholarship, Dr Leigh performed superbly as a delegate at the World Health Assembly in Geneva in 2019 and I am confident he will make a similarly positive impact at Oxford through work that will help change people\u2019s lives and promote the health of society.<\/p>\n