Dr Helen Van Gessel (GP)
- Name
- Dr Helen Joanna Van Gessel
- Qualifications
- Bachelor of Medicine / Bachelor of Surgery University of Tasmania Australia 1993
- FRACP Australia
- Occupation
- General Practitioner (GP)
- Infectious Disease Specialist
- Gender
- Female
Originally from New Zealand, Dr Helen Van Gessel has called many places home including Bougainville Island, Papua New Guinea, Tasmania, Perth and the Pilbara before moving permanently to Albany in 2011.
Helen is a WA-trained General Physician who has experience and a particular interest in infectious diseases, but is happy to receive referrals for a range of general medical conditions.
She studied at the University of Tasmania (B Med Sci, MB BS (Hons) and gained specialist Physician training in Perth at Fremantle Hospital, Sir Charles Gairdner and Royal Perth Hospital, with additional training in infection control, public health, epidemiology and patient safety.
Helen has worked as a consultant infectious diseases physician in Royal Perth Hospital, as well as being a medical advisor to the Office of Safety and Quality in Healthcare and the Healthcare Associated Infection Unit for the WA Health Department.
In addition she has authored book chapters and published in peer-reviewed journals mainly in the areas of Antimicrobial Stewardship and infection prevention and control.
Since being in Albany she has worked in medical administration, patient safety and quality, disease control and population health as well as a general physician. She is currently working at Albany Hospital as a physician seeing inpatients and outpatients and also runs regular clinics at the Albany Prison and in Katanning. Helen is on the board of Pivot Support Services, a community organisation focused on prisoner reintegration and building better communities.
Helen is passionate about doctors doing the best they can to improve the health of the community – not just in treating illness when it occurs, but helping in the community whenever possible, focusing on disease prevention and chronic disease management to keep people as healthy as they can be.
Helen’s decision to combine both public and private work was based on a desire to improve local patient’s access to specialist physician services in Albany. She is looking forward to the opportunity the GSSC will provide to see visiting and local specialists working co-operatively through the one central service, enabling coordinated care and excellent communication with local GPs and patients.
Outside of her work as a doctor Helen had loved visiting Albany on regular holidays. After 20 years in Perth, she and her family decided they wanted to live in the country and felt Albany was small enough to feel connected to the community, far enough from Perth not to be overrun with tourists, but big enough to have work opportunities, great schools and fantastic natural environment.
Helen has loved watching her two teenagers growing up in Albany, the oldest will be following in her footsteps and starts studying medicine at UWA next year. When she has any spare time she loves to travel and is trying to learn French!
- Affiliated Clinics
- Great Southern Specialist Centre
- Affiliated Organisations
- The Royal Australasian College of Physicians (RACP)
Practice Locations
WA
- Great Southern Specialist Centre
- Address
- 55 Cockburn Rd
Mira Mar WA 6330
Australia
- Phone
- 08 9841 3500
- Fax
- 08 9841 3500
