Yi Hua Xie FRACS
General Surgeon
20 April 1963 - 5 April 2014
Yi Hua Xie FRACS was the youngest of 5 children and with encouragement from his military trained father, who wanted him to be a good doctor and to 'go west', completed training as a general surgeon at the 2nd University of Shanghai Hospital, Shanghai, China and emigrated in 1995 with his wife Wen and young family via New Zealand to Australia completing the AMC Exams in 2000, gaining income from many part-time jobs outside of medicine along the way.
Working initially in the Emergency Department he was supported as a non-accredited registrar in general surgery at Frankston Hospital, Peninsula Health, by Colin Russell, commencing SET training in the Southern Hub in 2006 gaining the FRACS in 2011, graduating at the ASC Convocation in Kuala Lumpur in 2012. He was the general and colorectal fellow at Dandenong Hospital in 2012 and was appointed Full Time Staff Specialist at La Trobe Regional Hospital in 2013.
Inoperable pancreatic cancer was diagnosed in July 2013, and after an initial response to chemotherapy, allowing a trip to China in March 2014, he succumbed on April 5, 2014.
During his illness he rekindled his talents with the brush completing many oil paintings, several with an Australian theme, which Wen has donated to Monash Health.
An education fund was established by Monash Health and other surgeons who worked with Yi, to support Wen and their 3 children, Tian, Jordan and Michael.
Though born in the year of the rabbit, Yi gained the nickname at university as 'The ox' - so strong, determined and stubborn, and yet, as well as displaying these qualities, he enjoyed doing things with his hands, including carpentry and model trains, but demonstrated great passion with everything he touched from his family, his work as a surgeon, his colleagues - students, fellow trainees and consultants, and of course his patients.
He was an outstanding trainee and surgeon, and so impressed were those senior colleagues with whom he worked, with his expertise, professionalism and personal skills, that those at Monash Health Surgery, Dandenong have established an award.
The Yi Hua Xie Trainees' Award for Excellence in General Surgery, will be awarded annually to the SET trainee working at Dandenong Hospital, Monash Health, who as judged by the consultants, has displayed excellence in the RACS Competencies and Monash Health values, emulating those of the award's name sake Yi Hua Xie.
Bruce Waxman OAM FRACS
January 2015