Published On: October 7th, 2021

8th Rural and Remote Health Scientific Symposium

A number of researchers from the University Departments of Rural Health (UDRH) have presented their findings at the 8th Rural and Remote Health Scientific Symposium over the past two days.

ARHEN Board member, Professor Lisa Bourke from the Department of Rural Health, University of Melbourne presented on Preparing Rural Health Services for Inclusive Practice.  Professor Bourke spoke on the importance of providing inclusive health care in rural communities and outlined a new framework to help rural health services address the underlying reasons for exclusion as a precursor for building more inclusive practices.

Some of the other speakers from our UDRH network included:

  • Laura Wright from JCU Murtupuni Centre for Rural and Remote Health who spoke on Assessing workplace safety and wellbeing for remote area nurses in Australia.
  • Dr Olivia Mitchell from the Department of Rural Health, University of Melbourne who spoke on Improving cultural inclusion in a rural Victorian mainstream health service.
  • Emma Taylor from the Western Australia Centre for Remote Health spoke on Improving the care of Indigenous people with cancer:  staffing and teamwork matters.

A number of researchers also presented posters including:

  • Clara Walker from Southern Queensland Rural Health – The impact of nursing and midwifery student placements on rural health services.
  • Brent Smith from Three Rivers Department of Rural Health, Charles Sturt University and Rebecca-Kate Oates from the Department of Rural Health, University of Melbourne – Partnerships in health: achieving success through service learning placements.
  • Keryn Bolte from the Department of Rural Health, University of Melbourne – The impacts of staff learning environments on rural recruitment and retention.

Professor Sabina Knight from JCU Murtupuni Centre for Rural and Remote Health facilitated a concurrent session on workforce training, as well as one on cultural and physical safety.  Associate Professor Melissa Nott from Three Rivers Department of Rural Health Charles Sturt University facilitated sessions on translating research and capacity building, as well as access to health care.

As regionally-based academic centres, the UDRHs play vital role in addressing research gaps and building the evidence base for rural and remote health practice, as well as building research capabilities and mentoring early-career researchers.

ARHEN has long had an association with the Rural and Remote Health Scientific Symposium and is proud to have been a sponsor of this year’s event.

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