5 minutes with...

DR EMIL DJAKIC

If you could cure one disease in your lifetime, which would it be?
Identifying a single disease to cure is extremely difficult from a general practice perspective. The beauty of general practice is we don’t prioritise one illness over another.

What philosophical principle strongly informs the work you do?
Access and equity. Illness presents in many different ways, and general practice should be open to this diversity.

What would you never do again?
Forget to confirm flights out of Cairo. My wife and I found ourselves stranded at Cairo airport from midnight hoping to be reallocated seats that had been sold out from under us.

The best book you ever read was?
Les Misérables by Victor Hugo. Great drama and history, with a strong commentary on the politics of the era.

What single piece of advice would you give to a medical student?
Wait more than seven seconds for a patient to describe their presenting complaint before interjecting.

Which public figure do you admire most and why?
Galileo – for his tenacity in presenting the evidence of scientific endeavour in the face of a completely different paradigm that was upheld by the authorities of the state.

What has been your most embarrassing moment at work?
Missing the morning plane to Canberra a few years ago and turning up to work (unexpectedly) for the day. It’s very embarrassing waving your own flight off.

Can you tell MO something most people don’t know about you?
I am official coach of the Central Ulverstone under-10s girls’ soccer team, in which my daughter is a star player.

Dr Emil Djakic is a GP in Ulverstone, Tasmania and AGPN chair