After 15 years in the shearing sheds, Matt Tumohe (left) graduated from the University of Otago with a Bachelor of Medicine and Surgery on Saturday.
After 15 years in the shearing sheds, a Tainui man hopes to serve the communities that shaped him after completing a Bachelor of Medicine and Surgery.
Matt Tumohe (Tainui, Ngāti Pou, Ngāti Māhuta) achieved the major career change on Saturday, when he graduated from the University of Otago in Dunedin.
Now 43, Tumohe said he first began shearing at age 11 on his family’s farm in Milton.
He said his grandfather introduced him to the work, and recognised his potential early on.
“He watched over me and the way that I worked … I think he saw that I had a bit of a knack for it and was like, ‘I think you can do something with it’,” Tumohe said.
He said shearing was a demanding occupation that required physical and mental endurance, qualities he felt primed him for the medical field.
“Both require you to push through barriers, which help to build a bit of stamina and mental toughness. Like all good things, it takes time to see the benefit but they are eventually really rewarding,” he said.
After leaving high school, Tumohe worked full-time in shearing for several years.
While his family encouraged him to continue in the trade, he remained interested in higher education.
“The idea of university was always sort of bubbling away in the background,” he said.
Several personal experiences motivated his return to study.
His partner at the time was retraining as a pharmacist after working as a nurse, and his sister survived leukaemia while completing a dentistry degree.
“Watching these things happen at the time … it had quite a big influence on me in terms of thinking, ‘OK, maybe I can do some study’," Tumohe said.
At age 27, he enrolled in a Bachelor of Science.
While completing the degree, he met peers on the path to medicine, and their encouragement led him to apply for medical school.
“I thought, ‘Oh, but could I? Is that possible?’… Coming from a rural background where my shearing colleagues would say, ‘I talked to the doctor, and they don’t get it at all,’ I thought, maybe I can serve in that way,” he said.
Before beginning medicine, Tumohe returned to shearing for a few more years.
He said this period helped confirm his decision to pursue medicine.
“It made me realise, yep, this is the right thing to do now,” he said.
Tumohe said support from family and his wife helped him commit to the lengthy and demanding training.
“We sat down and said, right, this is where we’re at now… We’ll just try and figure things out as we go,” he said.
He said his experience as a shearer helped him manage the challenges of medical training.
“Shearing is physically intense… Medicine, in a different way, is like that but cognitively. You’re going through mental barriers, mental exhaustion. In med school, they talk about drinking from a fire hose - that’s exactly what it’s like."
Tumohe said there were parallels between the early stages of shearing and medicine, that both require persistence to get through the hardest parts.
“The first few weeks in both are make-or-break. You’ve got to push through, develop resilience, and eventually you find a flow. Only then does it start to make sense, and that’s where the reward comes,” he said.
During his medical training, Tumohe took part in a rural immersion programme in Central Otago, based at Dunstan Hospital.
He said working in rural general practice gave him exposure to cases and patient experiences he could relate to.
“The people were familiar. Their stories were very relatable to me. Seeing how consultants and senior colleagues handled these issues, learning from them, it was really valuable,” he said.
He said urban placements were initially more challenging.
“Coming into Wellington for my first clinical year, it was intimidating … You don’t get the same one-on-one interactions that you do in regional hospitals,” Tumohe said.
Tumohe said his final year at Hawke’s Bay Hospital in Hastings was particularly positive.
“Hastings has been amazing. The staff, the friendships, the interactions, it makes a massive difference,” he said.
He said he intends to work in rural medicine, where he hopes to apply his experience and skills.
“That was the original reason I came back to medical school. Rural immersion, the rural hospital training programme, it all aligned with my goals. There’s a spectrum of areas I can work in - ED, general medicine, acute medicine -which suits me well,” he said.
Tumohe graduated on December 6, a day he said was emotionally significant for him and his whānau.
“You see how proud your family and friends are. It’s not really just about you, it’s something everyone gets to be part of … Usually, the reasons we come together are tangi or funerals. Graduation gave everyone a chance to celebrate something amazing,” he said.
He said the milestone offered a sense of collective achievement for his family.
“We’re a big family, and it’s nice to have something positive to share … You just see how proud your family and friends are of what you’re getting to graduation."
In his final year of study, Tumohe and his wife welcomed a daughter into the world in April.
“My wife and I were blessed with the arrival of our daughter which has made life a little busier but very special.
“I have a new-found respect for all the mamas out there and nothing I have been able to achieve would even be remotely possible without my wife steering the waka.”
Tumohe said his story could encourage others considering a major career change.
“If there’s an inclination to serve in that way, that’s a good sign. Give yourself space to see what’s right for you, external to all the noise.
“Once you commit, once you sign up, that’s 90% of the battle … You just have to back yourself,” he said.
He said he hopes to inspire other rural workers to consider medicine.
“It’s been challenging, but so rewarding. And now I can finally offer something back to the communities that shaped me.”
Ben Tomsett is a multimedia journalist based in Dunedin. He joined the Herald in 2023.