New doctor in town

In case you haven’t noticed, there’s a new doctor in the neighbourhood.

Samita Pandey, the newest addition to Barrhead Medical Centre staff, arrived last month and says she is appreciative of the community’s welcome. Originally from Cape Town, South Africa, Pandey earned a degree in medicine from Stellenbosch University in 2009 and later emigrated to Canada, accepting a position in Valleyview that began in 2016.

“It just wasn’t the right fit for me personally,” she said, noting that it feels different in Barrhead.

Pandey said general practice was not her first career choice.

“I was always interested in medicine but I really wanted to be a dentist. Turns out, I became a doctor instead,” she said, adding the staff at Barrhead Medical Centre have been very nice and pleasant to work with.

When asked what kind of superpowers she might have, Panday considered her words carefully before answering.

“I don’t know ... I guess it would be neat to be able to heal any disease at a touch,” she said.

And for those of you who want to know, she picked an elephant as the animal she’d be if she could be any one.

“Because an elephant is so calm, so peaceful,” Pandey added.