Dinesh Palipana

Emergency Doctor and Researcher, Spinal Cord Injury Project

Dinesh was the first quadriplegic medical intern in Queensland, and the second person to graduate medical school with quadriplegia in Australia. He earned a Bachelor of Laws (LLB), prior to completing his Doctor of Medicine (MD) at the Griffith University. Halfway through medical school, he was involved in a catastrophic motor vehicle accident that caused a cervical spinal cord injury. After graduating from medical school Dinesh faced significant challenges in gaining an internship. As a result of the barriers medical students and doctors with disabilities face, he has advocated for an inclusive medical profession. Dinesh became a founding member of Doctors with Disabilities Australia. Dinesh is currently a resident in emergency medicine at the Gold Coast University Hospital. He is an Associate Lecturer at the Griffith University. Dinesh was the Gold Coast University Hospital’s representative in the Australian Medical Association Queensland’s Council of Doctors in Training in 2017 & 2018.

Read more about Dinesh, the Ambassador council and citizen-led agenda here

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