Dr Bec Storck’s story – balance and leadership that inspires

Ochre Health prides itself in a caring environment where people are truly at the heart of the organisation. From working together through to providing team members with a choice to work the hours that suit their lifestyle – people are always the centre.

It’s these strong values that attracted Dr Bec Storck to the Ochre family. Initially joining as a Locum to take advantage of the connected network of Ochre clinics, Bec and her family set off on a 12-month adventure around Australia. But their travel plans were cut short when they fell in love with everything the small town of St Helens – their second travel stop – had on offer. Bec and her family haven’t looked back since their relocation in 2019. Here, she tells us why…

While it’s not all location, location, location, it certainly helps!

Having left behind the glorious beaches of North Queensland we stumbled across the gem of St Helens on the east coast of Tasmania. I would describe it as stupidly beautiful, which makes sense given the Lonely Planet once rated the area “the world’s hottest travel destination”. But it wasn’t just the picturesque scenery and endless outdoor pursuits that drew us in, we just fell in love with the community, and I, with the local practice.

Genuine connections

It struck me as soon as I did my locum here that the people are so genuine and being a smaller town, the sense of community is strong. I genuinely feel we’re working together for the best patient outcomes, as we are encouraged to educate and empower patients to make changes in their own life. We are simply their support crew, their cheer squad. We have a medically challenging community here – an elderly population that is not particularly wealthy, so gaining that trust, confidence, and connection, makes all the difference. The value of a strong connection spans across our whole team. From the front office to the nurses, to management and all GP’s – even the local hospitals and nursing homes, we are all working together, and we support each other.

Leadership that inspires

With experience working at different corporates, I can honestly say the focus at Ochre feels quite different. It’s clearly centred on improved health outcomes for the community, with money not seemingly a driving factor and I respect that. The COVID outbreak was a great example – Hamish and John from our management team leapt into action and were right there at the coal face with us. You could they were working tirelessly and around the clock, drafting plans for the practices, and securing PPE to keep everyone safe. That kind of leadership emphasises the sense of care that carries right throughout the organisation.

Achieving the elusive work-life balance

Previously, I was running my own practice with colleagues in Cairns and quite literally ‘running’ around outside of work. Most nights I’d come home to find my kids already asleep and I saw this move as an opportunity to take back that precious family time. Here, it’s a more laid-back lifestyle. Ochre allow me to do my 4-day work week, plus have the flexibility to start or finish early for the school run. I never feel like it’s an issue to be there for my kids, because it’s apparent that family and work life balance is something Ochre strongly value. Coming from my own practice, I thought it might be a difficult transition to working for a corporate, but I have complete autonomy over my practice here (as if it were my own), just without the stress and long hours!

Opportunities for growth

While the year was somewhat eclipsed by COVID, I know that there are courses supported by Ochre available to upskill when I’m ready. With Hamish and John being doctors, they understand the importance of continued education in our field and genuinely encourage this. Aside from formal education, our team sit down together once a week and take turns presenting cases or topics of interest. It’s a great way to support each other and learn at the same time.

It’s simply a great place to work

Ochre Health is a friendly corporate, and at the core of the business is the best patient care. We are run by GPs who still work as GPs and this filters through to the values of the business. And that’s what makes Ochre Health a great place to work.