Governance
ARHEN is a company limited by guarantee and operates on a not for profit basis.
ARHEN is governed by a Board of Directors comprising senior representatives from the University Departments of Rural Health.
ARHEN Directors come from a variety of professional backgrounds and have extensive experience in rural health education, research and service delivery.
ARHEN Executive
Chair
Associate Professor Pamela Harvey
Treasurer
Associate Professor Pamela Harvey
BAppSci(Physio) MEd PhD FHEA
Director, Rural Nursing and Allied Health Partnerships
Dr Harvey is a physiotherapist with broad clinical and academic experiences in rural and regional areas. She has taught across physiotherapy and medical education; and has research interests in graduate attributes and end-of-life care in rural areas.
Deputy Chair
Associate Professor James Debenham
Member
Associate Professor James Debenham
James has a background as a clinical and academic Physiotherapist. Having been with the University of Notre Dame Australia since 2010, James relocated to Broome in 2022 where he is now the Director of Majarlin Kimberley Centre for Remote Health. James’ clinical background is as a Sports and Musculoskeletal Physiotherapist and he has a wide range of research interests with a specific interest in ‘mechanisms research’, exploring diverse topics ranging from musculoskeletal injuries to broad professional practice issues, including those with impact on rural health and the rural health workforce.
Treasurer
Professor Carol McKinstry
Member
Professor Carol McKinstry
Carol is Professor of Occupational Therapy and Deputy Dean with La Trobe University’s Rural Health School at the Bendigo campus. She is currently Chair of Academic Board and member of University Council. She is a board director with OT Australia and Bendigo Health. Carol’s research focus is on health workforce and she leads the rural workforce stream of the Violet Vines Marshman Research Centre for Rural Health.
ARHEN Directors
Professor Beth Armstrong
Member
Professor Beth Armstrong
B.App. Sc. (Speech Pathology), M.A. (Hons), PhD
Director, Edith Cowan University Department of Rural Health South West, Bunbury, Western Australia
From a Speech Pathology background, Professor Armstrong has worked in health and academic leadership roles for over twenty years. Her research interests focus on brain injury rehabilitation, with expertise in linguistic analysis of health interactions and aphasia and a focus on Aboriginal Australians’ experiences after stroke and traumatic brain injury and improving access to culturally secure rehabilitation services.
Professor Lisa Bourke
Member
Professor Lisa Bourke
BSc BSW MSc PhD
Director, UDRH, Department of Rural Health, The University of Melbourne, Shepparton VIC.
Prof Bourke is a rural sociologist and social worker who has worked in rural health for several decades. Her research focuses on rural health, rural communities, inclusive rural health care and the wellbeing of rural, remote and Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Australians. She is committed to empowering and giving voice to marginalised health consumers and educating the next generation of health practitioners to be innovative and inclusive.
Professor Leanne Brown
Chair
Professor Leanne Brown
BHSc (N&D) GradCertPaed N&D GradCertSports Nutr PhD AdvAPD
Academic Lead, Teaching and Learning, University of Newcastle, Department of Rural Health, Tamworth NSW
Associate Professor Brown is an Advanced Accredited Practising Dietitian with more than 20 years in the dietetics profession. After working as a clinical dietitian in metropolitan areas, Leanne made tracks back to the country, relocating to Tamworth in 2003 and moving into a rural-based academic role. Her experience spans diverse areas of clinical dietetics practice, health workforce research and practice-based teaching. Her current research is focused on health service delivery models and research translation in the rural context.
Professor Fiona Doolan-Noble
Member
Professor Fiona Doolan-Noble
Professor Doolan-Noble has a background in nursing, health service management, primary health care and interprofessional education. Her research interests span multimorbidity; provision of primary health care, especially in rural areas, including implementation of lay models of service delivery; ageing well in rural; men’s health; the impact of disaster management processes on rural communities, and moral distress in both human and animal health professionals.
Professor Claire Drummond
Member
Professor Claire Drummond
Professor Claire Drummond is a senior health leader with many years’ experience across both metropolitan and rural Australia in health education, workforce development and system improvement. With a clinical background in Allied Health (Exercise Physiology), she is committed to enabling students to become health advocates and future leaders and contributes to strengthening rural health systems and equitable access to care.
Professor Catrina Felton‐Busch
Member
Professor Catrina Felton‐Busch
BA, MPH, Grad Cert PHC Res, PhD (candidate), ARLF
Director Murtupuni Centre for Rural & Remote Health (Mount Isa), Division of Tropical Health & Medicine James Cook University, Australia.
Associate Professor Felton-Busch is a Yangkaal & Gangalidda woman from Mornington Island who currently lives and works on Kalkadoon country in Mount Isa.
Associate Professor Felton-Busch has an extensive academic career in Indigenous Health of over 20 years commencing her academic career at the Mount Isa Centre for Rural & Remote Health in October 2000. Associate Professor Felton-Busch is an experienced qualitative health researcher aligning her research with her personal commitment to improving the lives of her own people. She is currently a Chief Investigator on two NHMRC grants and a Centre for Research Excellence – CRE-Stride.
Associate Professor Felton-Busch is also undertaking a PhD on pregnancy and birth in her home community of Mornington Island. She is the Chair of the Aboriginal Torres Strait Islander Health Committee for General Practice Training at James Cook University and a long term advocate for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander education and research having previously serviced as the Director of the Indigenous Health Unit within the Division of Tropical Health and Medicine, James Cook University 2010 – 2015 and the Associate Professor Remote Indigenous Health and Workforce. 2016 – 2022. Associate Professor Felton-Busch was appointed as the Director of Murtupuni Centre for Rural & Remote Health (JCU) in February 2022.
Professor Vicki Flood
Member
Professor Vicki Flood
Head of Clinical School, Northern Rivers and Director, University Centre for Rural Health, Northern Rivers, with the Faculty of Medicine and Health, the University of Sydney.
Professor Flood has a background in nutrition and dietetics, epidemiology and public health, and her research areas include research capacity building, food insecurity, malnutrition, nutrition and disability, depression, and ageing, multidisciplinary research, chronic disease prevention, and community co-design approaches to research.
Christine Howard
Chair
Christine Howard
B.Soc.Sc., Dip.App.Sc., Mid
Position: Director Three Rivers Department of Rural Health, Charles Sturt University
Christine has over 32 years of regional health service experience in the Murrumbidgee which spans across private, public and not for profit sectors. She has a background as a Registered Nurse and Midwife, and has held executive roles with oversight of direct primary health service delivery, regional primary health service planning and commissioning of health services. Her current role as Director of Three Rivers Department of Rural Health at Charles Sturt University focuses on improving the recruitment and retention of health professionals across regional NSW. Christine is also a Board Director on the Murrumbidgee Primary Health Network and Regional Development Australia, Riverina.
Professor Deb Jones
Member
Professor Deb Jones
Director, Broken Hill University Department of Rural Health
Generalist Nursing Registration (Broken Hill Base Hospital), Bachelor Health Science Gerontology, Graduate
Diploma Aged Service Management, Master of Indigenous Health (with Distinction), Doctor of Philosophy.
Professor Jones has extensive experience in the co-design of health services and workforce innovations within rural and remote locations. Professor Jones’ research and leadership is focused on community engagement, cross-sector collaborations, complex health strategies, re-framing health professional education to ensure a future-fit and rural-ready health workforce and the development of comprehensive rural and remote career, as well as education and employment pathways for nursing and allied health professionals.
Associate Professor Sara Jones AM
Member
Associate Professor Sara Jones AM
BA, Dip App Sci (Pod), MSc (PHC) PhD
Director, University of South Australia Department of Rural Health
With a background in Podiatry, Associate Professor Jones has worked in the areas of rural and remote health service delivery and student education for over twenty-five years, with a particular focus on primary health care, workforce education, Indigenous health and chronic conditions management.
Kim Pearce
Member
Kim Pearce
Kim Pearce holds a senior academic position with the leadership team of the Discipline of Rural and Remote Health in the College of Medicine and Public Health. With her Psychology background and 14-year career in rural and remote health, she has experienced a diverse career across general practice support and education, mental health operations and primary health service design and federal commissioning. She has expertise in First Nations People’s service design, and a passion to improve access to culturally appropriate health care services through consultation, collaboration, and advocacy.
Associate Professor Melissa Taylor
Member
Associate Professor Melissa Taylor
Associate Professor Mel Taylor is a registered nurse and researcher with over 30 years’ experience in ageing and end‑of‑life care. Her career in rural and regional communities underpins her commitment to strengthening the local health workforce and ensuring equitable, community‑led primary care across Southern Queensland. A recognised leader and mentor, Mel is dedicated to future‑focused workforce solutions tailored to rural needs. Her place‑based research supports communities to co‑design initiatives that improve health literacy, service navigation, workforce attraction, and care pathways for older people. With expertise spanning executive health leadership, clinical nursing, and aged and dementia care, Mel applies a systems‑thinking approach to enhancing care quality, workforce sustainability, and service innovation across the region.
Professor Sandra Thompson AM
Member
Professor Sandra Thompson AM
BSc(Med)(Hons) MB BS (Hons) PhD MPH FAFPHM Grad Dip Health Management
Director, Western Australian Centre for Rural Health, Geraldton, WA
Prof Thompson has worked in the health industry for over 20 years in a variety of roles – as a medical practitioner, laboratory-based researcher, public health researcher and epidemiologist, manager and public health practitioner.
Professor Vincent Versace
Member
Professor Vincent Versace
BSc (Hons, H1) PhD
Director, Deakin Rural Health, Warrnambool Campus, Deakin University, VIC
Professor Versace is committed to reducing rural health disparities. Collaborating widely with academic institutions, NGOs and government departments, he seeks to contribute to high-quality research through the robust application of biostatistics and spatial methods.