Tracy Buchanan
Tracy found her way into health promotion when she took on a position as a Project Officer in the Centre for Health Promotion at the Children, Youth and Women's Health Service in 2004. Tracy is a Registered Nurse and Midwife with post registration certificates in Gynaecological Nursing and Infant Welfare. She had previously worked for many years as a community child health nurse and as the Manager of the Child and Youth Health Volunteer Program for two years.
Tracy's previous university based study was limited to a conversion course for a Bachelor of Nursing in 1993 as an external student at Deakin University which she undertook to complement her hospital based studies. With encouragement from her manager, Tracy with some trepidation enrolled in the Master of Public Health Course at Flinders University in 2006. Her aim at the time was to gain a better understanding of health promotion and public health and equip herself to undertake further work in this area in the future. She also wanted to set an example for her two boys that even their mum could take on university studies.
Tracy continued to work full time over the two years of study and found many opportunities to link the study with her work at the Centre for Health Promotion. Having completed her study Tracy feels she has a much better understanding of the theory and practice of health promotion and public health and a good range of skills that will be of value in a range of positions. She would particularly like to acknowledge the excellent teaching and mentoring provided by Dr. Anne Johnson during her course.
Tracy is currently acting in a Program Manager role in the Centre for Health Promotion and is able to combine her new learning with her previous knowledge and experience in child and family health.