Territory’s rising star balancing study with elite sport

Batchelor Institute student Demitrice Doomadgee (21) is busy balancing her nursing studies with being an elite sportswoman. The aspiring nurse and midwife was selected to play Rugby League for the Northern Territory Titans after competing in a Rugby 7s competition at the beginning of the year. The competition was her first time playing in league, yet Doomadgee has played AFL for the first Indigenous women’s team in 2014, and has also been playing soccer in the NT league.

Originally, Doomadgee was selected as a shadow player for the NT rugby team. She was on the team, but was waiting for selection. After a surprise phone call, Doomadgee was called up and travelled to Adelaide to compete in the Combined Affiliated States competition in June this year. After her performance during the competition, Doomadgee was selected for the combined affiliates state (CAS) team.

Doomadgee has juggled her CAS training whilst playing in her local NT soccer and league team and studying a full-time Bachelor of Nursing degree. ‘It has definitely been a challenge trying to balance my dream to become a nurse and midwife with playing rugby league for a national team,’ Doomadgee says. But with the right support structures, Doomadgee believes it is possible to excel in both.

Doomadgee aspires to become a nurse and midwife in order to work on country and ensure that remote communities have access to quality health care. In 2018, Doomadgee will be part of the Elite Sports Program, and will meet with the Institute to discuss the support structures available to ensure she is able to continue her studies while playing elite sport.

For information on the course undertaken by Demi to become a nurse, including units Introduction to Professional Nursing (NUR120) and Primary Health Care (NUR115), delivered through a partnership with Charles Darwin University please visit this webpage – https://www.batchelor.edu.au/students/courses/higher-education-courses/bachelor-of-nursing/.