Dr Sonja Nagel (ret.)
Dr Armi Salonga
Dr Jean Lee
Rheumatology Specialist Centre
Toowoomba 
Phone: 07 4613 0549

Philosophy

At the Rheumatology Specialist Centre, we aim to understand and care about each one of our patients. Not just from the Rheumatological viewpoint, but also from the human perspective.  It is our aim to make all patients feel comfortable in a beautiful relaxing environment. We also aim to keep patients updated with information on their clinical condition as well as details of blood test results to enable a team approach to management. Whilst chronic conditions cannot all be cured, working together usually ensures a high level of disease control enabling life to be lived to its fullest.

 

Our Team

Dr Armi Salonga

Dr. Armi Salonga is a specialist Rheumatologist and General Medicine physician.

 

Dr. Salonga completed her Bachelor’s degree in Biology from the University of Santo Tomas (Hons) and earned her degree in medicine from St. Luke’s College of Medicine, Philippines. She underwent a two-year adult medicine residency training at St. Vincent’s Medical Centre, Connecticut, USA before moving to Australia where she trained in a number of hospitals in Queensland, including Gold Coast University Hospital, Princess Alexandra Hospital and Greenslopes Private Hospital.

She also worked as a specialist General Medicine physician at the Ipswich Hospital and as a Visiting Medical Officer in Rheumatology at the Princess Alexandra Hospital (Brisbane).

 

Dr. Salonga is a fellow of the Royal Australasian College of Physicians (RACP). Currently, she is a member of the Women in Rheumatology Australia Special Interest Group as well as the International Association of Women in Rheumatology. Her areas of interest are inflammatory arthritis, connective tissue disorders and gout.

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As a physician, Dr Salonga has a strong humanistic approach in the diagnosis and management of medical conditions and considers this as the core of her clinical practice.

 

Outside of work, she enjoys spending time with her husband and daughter.

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Dr Jean Lee

Dr Jean Lee is a Consultant Rheumatologist and Associate Lecturer at the University of Queensland.

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Dr Lee studied medicine at Monash University and completed her degree in 2012. She subsequently moved to Queensland and completed her basic physician training and rheumatology advanced training in Queensland based hospitals, which included Princess Alexandra Hospital, Gold Coast University Hospital, Greenslopes Private Hospital, Townsville Hospital, Rockhampton Base Hospital and other regional hospitals.

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Dr Lee was born in Malaysia and grew up in a multilingual, multicultural society before moving to Australia for her tertiary education. She is able to converse fluently in English, Mandarin, Cantonese, and Malay. With her unique upbringing background and clinical exposure in both remote and metropolitan regions, she includes patient’s cultural and personal beliefs into her patient care with passion.

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Aside from clinical medicine, Dr Lee also actively engages in research publication and education to both physician trainees and medical students. She is currently a fellow of the Royal Australasian College of Physicians (Rheumatology), and affiliated with Australia Rheumatology Association (Qld), International Association of Women in Rheumatology, and University of Queensland.

 

Dr Lee adopts a shared care approach with other specialities and primary care physicians in patient management as she believes this will improve patient outcomes, particularly for the patient who suffers from chronic rheumatological conditions who require multidisciplinary and cross specialty involvement.

 

Administration Staff

Christine Williams - Practice Manager

Chris is a wonderful Practice Manager who is an integral part of the Rheumatology Specialist Centre clinical management team. She has worked in the Rheumatological area for over two decades. Chris is very knowledgeable and is able to help with many general enquiries.

 

Megan Collins - Receptionist

Megan is our friendly staff who has been with Dr Sonja Nagel's practice for a couple of years before transitioning to the Rheumatology Specialist Centre team.