Wagga GP Geraldine Duncan recognised for her decades of dedication

Having practiced in Wagga since 1979, Dr Duncan is also a refugee advocate, has worked with sexual assault victims and been made an adjunct associate professor with the University of Notre Dame School of Medicine's Wagga Rural Clinical School.

Dr Duncan is "humbled" by the honour.

"I'm just a bit amazed really. I gather some of my colleagues put my name up and I'm just humbled and feel very honoured that they thought to do that," she said.

"Then I thought 'well ok, it's very nice that they put my name up, but that won't happen, so I don't really have to worry about anything'."

Dr Duncan's work with Wagga's refugees began through her practice.

"When Wagga became a resettlement centre, I was approached by a few people to see if I would be interested in having refugees into my practice and, of course, I said yes," she said.

"At that stage we had dribs and drabs of a few people arriving. I think initially we had some people from the former Yugoslavia and then we had a few Africans come through and I had the pleasure of really welcoming the first African family into Wagga.

"Then of course, we got various waves of different people: The Burmese community, many more people from many countries in Africa. For me, it's enriching because you just learn so much about different things, different cultures and the way they share with each other, and also their intense gratitude and humility for what you can do for them."

Aged 68, Dr Duncan admits one of her goals is to improve her work-life balance.

"I don't particularly want to pull out of medicine because I think I still have something to contribute, but I do have two grandchildren and would like to have that balance of family and work," she said.

"My practice in Wagga has been pretty full. I was a GP-obstetrician for many years. Then, I was one of the doctors who handled sexual assault on call, for 25 years or more. I guess I do it because even though it can be very tiring, something always happens that let's people tell you that they appreciate what you do."