Campbelltown Hospital’s Dr Seth Ung gives our youngest and most fragile premature babies the best start to life

Karma and the desire to give back is what motivates Campbelltown Hospital emergency and paediatrics staff specialist Dr Seth Ung.

Paediatric specialist Dr Seth Ung treats patient Connor Rose, 8, at Campbelltown Hospital. Pictures: Melvyn Knipe

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KARMA and the desire to give back is what motivates Campbelltown Hospital emergency and paediatrics staff specialist Dr Seth Ung.

Dr Ung, 42, is part of a dedicated team at the facility who are driven to helping the Macarthur region’s youngest and most fragile premature patients have the best possible chance in life.

“I believe if we can provide quality medical care to every child and young person so they are well and looked after, they will then go on and be able to perform in education and contribute to society,’’ Dr Ung said.

To help staff manage real emergency situations following premature births and possible life and death scenarios, the hospital received a boost earlier this month when the Kids of Macarthur Health Foundation pledged to donate new training manikins to the facility.

The state-of-the-art resuscitation manikins will include premature simulated twins which will resemble babies born at 27 weeks and weighing 700g, the size of a tissue box.

“Just like airline pilots who rehearse landing a plane with one engine in the event of an emergency, the doctors and nurses will practice scenarios so there is no compromise to patients in a real-life scenario,’’ he said.

Dr Seth Ung has helped to establish a children’s hospital in Cambodia and is driven to use his medical expertise to help others.

“I would like to reiterate that a lot of what the hospital is doing for children, newborns and mums is augmented by the Kids of Macarthur Heath Foundation and without them we would have a scrappy service.’’

Dr Ung, whose wife Melissa will give birth to their second child, a boy, in August, said he was recruited to work at Campbelltown Hospital 10 years ago by the head of paediatrics Dr Andrew McDonald.

Dr McDonald had heard of Dr Ung’s work to establish children’s hospitals in Cambodia and Laos and he encouraged him to join the team at Campbelltown.

“The growth that is occurring along Camden Valley Way dictates that we will need our own women’s and children’s hospital here and Dr McDonald asked me to assist that to happen,’’ Dr Ung said.

“This is what Campbelltown needs. It’s a different society and a different political system to Cambodia and Laos.’’

Dr Ung’s parents are from Cambodia and this is what motivated him to join Friends Without Borders and to share his expertise with others.

“I’m very fortunate to be raised in Australia away from the civil war and atrocities in Cambodia,’’ he said.

“I was given the opportunity to educate here and go through medical school and I always thought about the concept of karma.

“I was fortunate to be given something and I want to use those skills to help others.’’

Dr Ung said the children’s hospital in Cambodia now has a team of locally trained and self sufficient doctors, nurses and ancillary staff. The project was completed in 2014/15.

He then got involved with starting the Laos Friends Hospital for children two years ago.

“I would like to spend a month every year for 10 years to contribute to the hospital in Laos to get to the same point (as the hospital in Cambodia),’’ he said.

How does Dr Ung switch off at the end of the working day?

“I like a nice glass of red wine as long as I’m not on-call,’’ he said.