Born in Western Australia and brought up in Canada and other countries, Dr Michelle Burrows M.B.B.S (Qld) graduated from the University of Queensland on a scholarship which introduced her to rural hospitals in country Queensland.
The lure of Latin America – which remains one of her great passions today – proved strong and she spent a year travelling there before returning to complete general practice training.
Michelle headed back to Brisbane before arriving in Atherton where she worked as an employed GP. In 2005 she travelled Queensland doing Locums then travelled in Central America, before heading back to Atherton to establish her own business… and a family soon after. Juggling the demands of patients, a small business and her family – including overnight call-outs while on two-hourly breast feeds – gave her an initiation to the challenges of running a general practice.
She continued in the business for about 12 years but is now doing GP subcontractor work in order to spend more time with her family. She cites her interests as “trying to keep my arthritic joints playing hockey”, family, anything Latin American, travelling and reading.
Michelle joined the FNQ Division hoping her organisational skills would be an asset in assisting general practice and seeing the health sector become more efficient for practitioners and patients.