With the exception of doctors that it. Dr Sukcharanjit Singh, a member of Griffith’s Sikh community, said the best part of his job was always saving lives

Dr Singh is the latest addition to the staff at Griffith Base Hospital, and as their new specialist in anesthesia and intensive care it’s a comfort to hear he likes his job.

“You deal with the most ill patients, those with the most acute needs and that is a challenge every day,” Dr Singh said.

For the past six months the hospital had to rely on bringing in locums,or casual anaesthestists

Director of medical services at Griffith Base Hospital Dr Sergey Bibikov said the addition of Dr Singh was particularly beneficial because it allowed his team to provide  a better continuity of care to patients.

“Having local doctors is always better because it means they are familiar with the hospital, familiar with the staff and familiar with the patients and their needs,” Dr Bibikov said.

“Our goal is to provide better services for the community and a better level of care for every patient."

“Surgery is all about teamwork, you need to develop relationships with each other and this is crucial to patient care, without this it can be extremely difficult.”

Originally from Malaysia, Dr Singh spent 12 years in training to become an anaesthetist consultant. The last year Dr Singh spent in Monash Health before moving to Griffith.

Dr Singh displays a deep level of understanding of all of the elements of patient care. “I’m excited to be here, with it’s ageing population Griffith is a big challenge because that brings patients with it different  illnesses, each with its own complications.” A member of the Sikh community, Dr Singh’s presence in the hospital is seen as a big advantage.

“We are trying to have a diverse medical service because Griffith is a multicultural community,’ Dr Bibikov said. “We are lucky to have Dr Singh he was carefully selected and he is a step in the right direction for us moving forward.”