Wrap around care – general practice and radiology elevate women’s health in the ACT
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Olika Medical Practice and Atlas Medical Imaging are two new medical practices working closely together to keep Canberra women in top health.
Two female Canberra doctors, Dr Sharmila Sambandam and Dr Neha Singh, have helped establish these practices to promote the welfare of women, as well as bringing new levels of technical excellence to general practice and radiology and ensuring continuity of care for all members of the community.
Dr Sambandam is a Fellow of the Royal Australian College of General Practitioners with a special interest in obesity and metabolic health, women’s health and preventative medicine and a Postgraduate Diploma in Obesity Management.
In February she opened Olika Medical Centre in Phillip. This is a General Practice clinic, but it has a clear objective – to provide evidence-based, multidisciplinary care with a focus on women’s health and cardiometabolic medicine.
While the clinic welcomes all manner of patients, Dr Sambandam is dedicated to women’s health and medical weight management “because these are areas where we see enormous unmet need and enormous opportunity to improve lives”.
It was her own interest and passion for preventative medicine that led her towards obesity and cardiometabolic health.
“The more I learnt, the more fascinated I became by the science behind it – the complex interactions between hormones, inflammation, genetics, behaviour, environment and metabolism. And I truly believe this decade will mark a major shift in how society understands obesity. As this understanding becomes more widely accepted, we will hopefully see better access to evidence-based care, less stigma for patients, and more compassionate, medically informed treatment pathways,” she says.
“Women’s health is another area I care deeply about, and to me these two fields intersect beautifully. Across different stages of life, hormonal changes and inflammatory processes profoundly influence cardiometabolic health. And at Olika our goal is to care for patients with that whole-person perspective.”
Dr Neha Singh, left, from Atlas Medical Imaging and Dr Sharmila Sambandam from Olika Medical Practice
This approach is assisted through the close links Dr Samandam has forged with Atlas Medical Imaging in Deakin, where she is able to refer patients who need all manner of diagnostic imaging.
Coinciding with the launch of Olika, the ACT and surrounding region received a significant boost to diagnostic healthcare with the opening of Atlas Medical Imaging. Founded by six Canberra-based radiologists with a wide range of specialist expertise, Atlas brings together an experienced team using advanced imaging technology designed to improve patient safety and diagnostic accuracy.
A key feature of Atlas is one of the region’s first photon-counting CT scanners, the NAEOTOM Alpha.Pro. This is one of only five of its kind in Australia and represents a major step forward in CT imaging technology. In simple terms, it produces extremely detailed images while using significantly less radiation than traditional CT scans.
This makes it especially useful for people who are more sensitive to radiation, including pregnant women and babies, as well as patients who need repeated imaging. Overall, the technology helps doctors get clearer answers faster, while keeping scans as safe and comfortable as possible.
One of Atlas Medical Imaging’s key areas of expertise is women’s imaging, including breast and pelvic imaging. Dr Neha Singh completed her radiology training at The Prince of Wales Hospital and Royal North Shore Hospital in Sydney before undertaking subspecialty fellowships in abdominal and breast Imaging at the Royal Melbourne Hospital.
Dr Singh also an accredited ACT BreastScreen radiologist is committed to ensuring women have access to comprehensive imaging services that support earlier detection, accurate diagnosis, and improved patient care.
In breast cancer diagnosis, these capabilities enable Dr Singh and her colleagues to detect small lesions and subtle abnormalities at an earlier stage with a high degree of precision an approach that can be lifesaving.
Dr Singh said early detection of very small lesions can have a significant impact on treatment options, recovery outcomes, and long-term quality of life for women diagnosed with breast cancer.
Atlas offers comprehensive breast imaging services, that include contrast-enhanced mammography, an advanced imaging technique that combines mammography with an intravenous contrast agent to highlight areas of increased blood flow within the breast. By improving the visibility of abnormal tissue, this method can enhance cancer detection, particularly in women with dense breast tissue, while also supporting more informed diagnostic and treatment planning.
While acknowledging the important role BreastScreen plays in population-wide screening, Dr Singh said access to a comprehensive suite of imaging services including digital breast tomosynthesis (3D mammography), ultrasound, image-guided biopsies and MRI enables referring doctors to choose the most appropriate examination for each patient’s individual needs.
“Having access to a full range of advanced imaging and diagnostic services allows us to deliver more personalised care and support earlier, more accurate diagnoses,” Dr Singh said.
Dr Neha Singh, left, from Atlas Medical Imaging and Dr Sharmila Sambandam from Olika Medical Practice
Dr Singh said feedback from GPs highlighted that many patients with endometriosis were required to travel interstate for specialist imaging. In response, Atlas introduced dedicated expert imaging services for complex conditions such as endometriosis. Patients can now access advanced, specialist scanning at Atlas, which can significantly improve diagnosis and ongoing management of the condition while reducing the need to travel interstate for care.
“The Atlas team are all like-minded in the sense that we want to use best tools available, to solve people’s problems, whether they be big or small problems. So, when people are referred to Atlas, if it is a clinically significant finding, we can progress things so we can provide certainty as quickly as possible, or, best of all, we can resolve the problem.”
“Everywhere I look, I see women caring for their loved ones and even their work teams. Women put care of others at the centre of their lives, and care for themselves as an afterthought. But of course, when a woman’s health is affected, it affects everyone in her life, so we want to send that message – By all means, care for others, but self-care is integral to that. Let us care for the parts of you that need the scientific rigour and attention that we do best.” says Dr Singh.
“For too long, issues that affect women have not been the focus of medicine enough. This is definitely the case with endometriosis. It is really empowering as a service to be able to help women with wrap-around care,”
It’s a sentiment echoed by Dr Sambandam, who wants women to elevate their health and care despite many competing priorities in everyday life.
“It is a very common story that women allow their own needs to take second place to their family members, so when they come to Olika, I want them to feel embraced and to know that we can guide them on their journey to good health and feeling as good as they can.”
Olika Medical Centre is located at Level 8/1 Bowes Pl, Phillip and offers Women’s health, Medical weight loss and General practice services.
Atlas Medical Imaging is located at Building 1, Level 3, 70 Kent Street in Deakin and requires a GP or specialist referral.
