General News
11 June, 2025
The doctor is in
DOCTOR Dayani Halwatura has officially joined the team at the Avoca Clinic, part of the Central Highlands Health Network, transitioning from Ballarat and already making a strong impression on both locals and staff.
She said her move to Avoca is to ensure the local community has access to medical treatment.
“I like to help the people and that’s the main reason. Talking with Dr Michael Veal, people are having a lot of difficulties here, they cannot find a doctor to get a prescription at least,” Dr Halwatura said.
Working Tuesday to Thursday from 9:00am to 5:00pm, Dr Halwatura said the clinic is still growing, with more to come.
“We are expanding the clinic and we are still trying to do our best.”
As part of the Remote Vocational Training Scheme (RVTS), Dr Halwatura has embraced the challenges and rewards of rural doctoring.
“I am able to learn a lot of things, and with my resources, I can improve my knowledge and get exposed to more chronic problems. Working in the city, there are a lot of resources, we don’t have to use our brains as much, we can just refer.
Here, I have to work my mind and I have to think about how long that patient has to travel,” explaining that the experience of being a rural doctor has been a great experience so far and an eye opener.
Practice Nurse Kelly Rowlands praised the doctor’s early efforts and strong fit within the existing team.
“Any doctor is a good doctor to have in these sorts of settings.
If people have to travel for healthcare, that can have a real impact on their health as well.
“She’s got a lot of experience in the healthcare setting, as well as across a lot of different service areas.”
“It’s really interesting to be able to work alongside colleagues, because we all bring different resources to the mix, and ultimately we try and make sure it’s the patient that benefits the most from that.”
The Avoca Central Highlands Health Network has now been open for just over a year.
With Dr Halwatura’s arrival, the clinic is continuing to close the gap for locals who would otherwise struggle to access timely healthcare.
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