Let us get to know Dineli, the incredible scholar who is making waves in the medical world! Dineli is a 24-year-old woman from Melbourne who is currently studying in Queensland. She was born in Sri Lanka and moved to Australia when she was just 2 years old. With a passion for politics and a commitment to tangible change, Dineli has worked on various campaigns and even written to her local member of parliament! Through her grassroots-level work, she has discovered her queer identity and is now dedicated to creating safe spaces for all. 

After completing her VCE in Melbourne, Dineli pursued a Bachelor of Science at Melbourne Uni and majored in Reproductive Physiology. This led her to pursue an honours degree in the prevention of spontaneous preterm labour with Unimelb, igniting her passion for Obstetrics. Although she initially considered completing a PhD in this field, Dineli discovered that she enjoyed the patient-facing aspects of clinical medicine. As a result, she sat the Gamsat and began studying for a Doctor of Medicine at UQ in 2021. 

Dineli’s passion lies in health equity, and she believes that access to safe, culturally responsive, and accepting healthcare is a basic human right. She is particularly passionate about sexual and reproductive health and is working towards eliminating biological essentialism. Dineli hopes to become an Obstetrician and Gynecologists, creating safe spaces for trans people, gender-diverse people, and people of colour to access care. 

Dineli is grateful for the Pinnacle Foundation scholarship, which has been life changing. As an unpaid full-time student who is also committed to extracurricular volunteering, the scholarship has allowed her to focus on her education and pursue her dreams. When it comes to travel, Dineli is looking forward to visiting Sri Lanka again and loves Thai cuisine – outside of her parents’ cooking, of course!