Anna Dang, a 21-year-old Deakin University student, is on a mission to become Australia's first blind doctor. Born blind and given a one per cent chance of survival, she credits the medical field for saving her life twice and now wants to give back.
A Mission Inspired by Survival
Dang and her twin sister were born four months premature in Vietnam. Her family moved to Australia when she was four. As a teenager, she battled anorexia and a severe infection that led doctors to tell her mother to prepare for the worst.
“You might have to prepare to say goodbye,” Dang recalled being told. But doctors saved her, and that experience fuels her ambition.
Overcoming Barriers with Determination
Dang, who relies on her guide dog Kylie, admits her stubbornness is her greatest asset. “I’m very stubborn. Very, very stubborn. And I’ve been told by so many people that I’m dogmatic,” she said.
She is currently studying biomedical science, the precursor to medicine. “Someone has to do it first, and then others will follow,” Dang said.
Support and Technology
Liza Raymond from Deakin University believes Dang has what it takes. “She certainly has the right personality to do and make her dreams come true,” Raymond said.
Dang uses AI to analyse anatomical models, scans, and diagrams, with her phone describing what it sees. She acknowledges that as a doctor she would be limited to diagnosis and consultations but says her strength would be empathy.
“I won’t just be the doctor who can diagnose you and treat you, but I can be that doctor who can also help you through the ups and downs of being unwell,” she said.
