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WHRN2023 Poster Presentations

Printed posters will be on display at thew Symposium over both days.

IDNameOrganisationAbstract TitlePresenter Biography
PP1Mr Siddharth Adityan School of Rural Health, University of Sydney. Working harder, not smarter: A retrospective audit of occupational injuries presenting to the rural emergency department. I completed a Bachelor of Science at the University of Queensland with an interest in biomedical research in cancer therapeutics. I am currently a 3rd year medical student at the University of Sydney completing a 1-year rural placement at Dubbo Base Hospital. 
PP2Ms Isabelle Allworth School of Rural Health, University of Sydney. Exploring participants satisfaction with eHealth intervention for low back pain and knee osteoarthritis: enhancing physiotherapy access in rural Australia I am a 3rd year University of Sydney medical student fortunate enough to be completing the final two years of my degree in Orange, NSW. Born and raised in southern NSW, I am extremely passionate about rural medicine and look forward to being part of the next generation of rural doctors. 
PP3Dr Dilli BanjadeDistrict Radiation Oncology Service, WNSW LHD
Expansion of modern radiotherapy service to provide equitable access of cancer treatment to the community of Western NSW		Dr Dilli Banjade is the District Director of Medical Physics Specialists for WNSW Local Health District, overseeing medical physics services in the region. He is highly qualified, holding a PhD degree in Medical Physics, and has graduated from the Executive Clinical Leadership Program (ECLP) offered by the Clinical Excellence Commission (CEC) of NSW Health. With his extensive expertise, Dr Banjade strives to ensure the delivery of safe, accurate and high-standard radiotherapy services in the hospitals. His dedication to leadership, continuous improvement, and use of modern radiotherapy technology has significantly contributed to the enhancement of cancer treatment services in the regional area.
PP4Ms Karin BirknerUniversity of SydneyPiloting the Baby Buddy App in Western NSW Local Health DistrictKarin is a registered midwife, currently working on research projects to raise awareness of modifiable risk factors for stillbirth for the University of Sydney and the Sydney Local Area Health District. 
She has been a parent educator for the last 15 years and is passionate about helping new and expectant parents make informed choices in birth and parenting. 
PP5Mr Alexander Burke The University of Sydney.  Exploring First Nations’ and cultural safety content of Pharmacy curricula with academics in Australia TBC
PP6Ms Zoe ClarkeNSW Health – WNSWLHD, Western Cancer Centre DubboMedical Imaging Simulated Radiation Therapy: Improving access to palliative Radiation Therapy in WNSWLHDGrowing up in Forbes in the Central West, Zoe has always had a passion for healthcare equity for those in rural NSW. Completing a Bachelor of Medical Radiation Science (Radiation Therapy) at Charles Sturt University in Wagga Wagga, Zoe began her professional career in Orange at the Central West Cancer Care Centre before moving to Dubbo and being one of the foundational Radiation Therapist at the Western Cancer Centre Dubbo. With a desire to provide new and emerging Radiation Oncology technologies to patients who are geographically isolated, Zoe hopes to help futureproof specialist clinical services and sustain a secure workforce to aid in equity of care that is close to home for the patients of Western NSW LHD.
PP7Mr Maurice Chow Broken Hill University Department of Rural Health, University of Sydney.  Evidence for interventions in children with high blood lead levels – a scoping review (Maurice Chow) I am currently a third year medical student and will be graduating in 2024. I will share the results from my scoping review on the efficacy of interventions for children with elevated blood lead levels. This project was commissioned by the NSW Environment Protection Authority and was done at the Broken Hill University Department of Rural Health for my MD research project. This project has really opened my eyes to the world of lead and its widespread effects, and I am excited for where this research can go in the future. 
PP8Ms Lizzie Del Gigante School of Rural Health, University of Sydney. Investigating factors associated with the uptake of specialty positions by Sydney Medical School graduates: a retrospective analysis Lizzie is currently a 3rd year medical student at the School of Rural Health in Orange. Originally from Leeton, NSW and completed a Bachelor of Diagnostic Radiography prior to Medicine. She has a strong interest in rural healthcare and improving health outcomes in rural areas. 
PP9Ms Madeline Dyall School of Rural Health, University of Sydney.Fatigue-related incidents and prevention strategies in Australian grain farming: a mixed-methods feasibility study Madeline Dyall is a 3rd year medical student from the University of Sydney, undertaking 2 years of study at the School of Rural Health Dubbo. Originally hailing from Armidale, Madeline has a strong interest in rural medicine and plans to pursue this in her future career. 
PP12Mr Mohammad-Tarek El-Hamawi Bathurst Rural Clinical School, School of Medicine, Western Sydney University Surgical National Antimicrobial Prescribing Survey: An Audit of Bathurst Hospital Accepted 
PP13Miss Stephanie Harman Charles Sturt University Equitable Allied Health Service I am currently a 3rd year occupational therapy student studying at Charles Sturt University in Albury/Wodonga. I am originally from Broken Hill, a rural town in NSW. I have been employed as an Allied Health Assistant at the local health service within Broken Hill, which has provided me with strong ambition to complete my degree and go on to provide service in rural and remote areas. Completing my honours research project has given me a unique opportunity to delve further into this field.   
PP14Ms Ann-Maree HartleyCharles Sturt University How labelling social media youth suicidality disclosures as attention-seeking maintains stigma perspectives and inhabits appropriate treatment.Annie Fardell Hartley is a Registered Psychologist and Suicidologist with over 23 years of experience. Annie has worked across all tiers of clinical service provision, with most of her time spent in, and leading teams dedicated to child and adolescent mental health. 
She is currently finalising her PhD which has investigated how rural youth experiencing suicidality interact with social media. 
PP15Mr Trent House The University of Sydney Impact of Remoteness on Incidence of Out of Hospital Cardiac Arrests. I am a third-year medical student at the University of Sydney. After growing up in rural Australia, I worked in medical sciences for 15 plus years and returned to medical school to transition into medical practice.  Areas of interest include rural and remote medicine and health determinants and outcomes of people with increased burden of disease.  
PP16Mr Evan Jenkins School of Rural Health, University of Sydney.The determinants of non-pharmacological low value care in patients with musculoskeletal pain in rural Australia I’m a third-year medical student at the University of Sydney, currently on a year-long elective at Orange Health Service. Originally from Wollongong, I hold an undergraduate degree in Pharmacology and Physiology from the Sydney University. Beyond medicine, I enjoy football (the round ball kind) and running. My goal is to pursue a career in rural surgery. 
PP17Ms Yae Joo JunWNSWLHD
Palliative radiation therapy in WNSWLHD: evaluating the clinical implications of an easier access model of care
Accepted
PP18A/Prof Marjan Khajehei Westmead HospitalChildbirth – an emotionally demanding experience: Perinatal education for fathers living in rural areas Accepted
PP19Ms Airlie Kinross School of Rural Health, University of Sydney.At the “Heart” of Western NSW: A Cross-sectional, Multi-dataset Analysis of the Practice Incentives Program Measurement of Absolute Cardiovascular Disease Risk Factors I am a third year medical student studying at the University of Sydney’s School of Rural Health (Orange campus). She has completed a research project investigating the measurement of absolute cardiovascular disease risk factors in Western NSW and has discovered a greater appreciation for the impact research can have on the preventative health sphere. Upon finishing medical school, Airlie is keen to move back rurally to complete her junior doctor years and beyond. 
PP21Mr Tristan Marino The University of Sydney Barriers and facilitators of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Cultural Competency and Safety in Australian Hospital Emergency Departments: a scoping review. Tristan is a third year medical student from the University of Sydney, currently undertaking a clinical year with the School of Rural Health in Orange. Tristan has a background in Emergency Nursing and is passionate towards Emergency Medicine, focusing on vulnerable populations and Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander health.
PP22Hannah McDermott WNSW LHDExercise Physiology in Cancer Care NSW healthI am an Accredited Exercise Physiologist who has worked in private practice and NGOs across 3 states over the last 6 years. I began working for NSW Health last year when the opportunity to work with people living with cancer presented itself in the form of a pilot program based at Orange Health Service.
PP24Ms Shenaya MendisWestern Sydney University Perspectives of healthcare providers on stroke services in the Bathurst region: A qualitative study Shenaya Mendis is a final year medical student. She is completing her Doctor of Medicine degree at Western Sydney University and will be working as a junior doctor in Blacktown Hospital next year. Shenaya intends on specialising in psychiatry and has a special interest in rural and regional health. Shenaya has done various placements in both rural and metropolitan settings in Australia. 
PP25Miss Alice Morrison School of Rural Health, University of Sydney.Out of Hospital Cardiac Arrest Survival Outcomes in New South Wales: A Retrospective Cohort Study I am a 3rd year postgraduate medical student from the University of Sydney. My background is in Nursing and Health Sciences. I am originally from Forbes in Central West NSW and my research interests include improving rural health outcomes and critical care. 
PP26Mrs Michelle Owens Charles Sturt University Paramedic perspectives on cross-border ambulance response: Non-technical skills in high acuity trauma Michelle is a student researcher studying a Masters of Paramedicine specialising in Critical Care at Charles Sturt University. She is a registered paramedic working as an Intensive Care Paramedic regionally at Albury. She has completed a Bachelor of Nursing and Clinical Practice (Paramedics) in 2008 at Charles Sturt University. She has also completed a Graduate Certificate of Adult and Vocational Education. She has worked along the New South Wales-Victorian border for the past 14 years and has a passion for improving cross-border ambulance response. Michelle’s supervisory team includes Dr Judith Crockett and Ms Jodie Brabin.
PP27Mrs Maryanne Podham Charles Sturt University Exploring experiences of rural and remote registered nurses, instigating advance care planning discussions. Maryanne Podham is a teaching academic and early career researcher. As a Registered Nurse, she has clinical expertise in many areas of health care including surgical, paediatric, aged care and chronic and complex care. Her research is focused on experiences of registered nurses in instigating advanced care planning discussions. 
PP28Ms Rachael Price School of Rural Health, University of Sydney.Unveiling vCare: A cross-sectional analysis of presenting health complaints of vCare encounters, to advance virtual telehealth understanding and access in Western NSW Rachael Price is a third-year medical student at the University of Sydney School of Rural Health, Dubbo. After completing the first two years of the degree in Sydney, Rachael was keen for a change of lifestyle and pursued the opportunity to undertake Year 3 and 4 in Dubbo via the Extended Rural Placements program. With a prior career working in pharmaceutical clinical trials, Rachael enjoyed conducting research from a different perspective while completing her MD research project, for which this research was produced. 
PP29Ms Jess Skelly Charles Sturt University School of Rural Medicine Uncovering the prevalence of multi-drug resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) in rural communities to improve antibiotic treatment outcomes. I am a third-year medical student in the Charles Sturt University School of Rural Medicine. The final three years of the five-year Doctor of Medicine are full-time clinical placement in a rural community, which I’m undertaking in Parkes, NSW. Originally from Crookwell, NSW- a small town of less than 3000 people- I have a deep love for rural communities and rural health equity, and I’m thrilled to be working on a research project specific to the rural demographic. I have a strong interest in a Rural Generalist pathway and building a career which gives me time in both rural general practice and in emergency medicine as a GP VMO.
PP30Mr Henry Taubert-Gallagher School of Rural Health, University of Sydney.A review of cardiovascular disease absolute risk calculation in Australia: Implications for rural populations Henry Taubert-Gallagher is a third-year medical student studying at the University of Sydney, based at the Orange School of Rural Health. He has a strong interest in cardiology and cardiovascular health and looks forward to sharing his research at the WHRN 2023 Research Symposium 
PP31Ms Madeleine Tropman School of Rural Health, University of Sydney.Remoteness in telemedicine: how location affects the patient journey through the vCare tele-emergency & transfer service. Madeleine Tropman is a 3rd-year medical student at the University of Sydney School of Rural Health. Originally from Sydney, she discovered her passion for rural healthcare working on the Southern NSW ski fields while studying her BSc(Adv). Now based in Dubbo for her MD, she has enjoyed this opportunity to contribute to rural health research with her project examining telemedicine and transfer in Western NSW. She is privileged to be a recipient of the NSW Rural Doctors Network Cadetship, and looks forward to future involvement in rural health clinical and research roles. 
PP32Dr Brie Turneron behalf of
the Murray-Darling Medical Schools Network Research Collaboration
The University of Sydney		Murray-Darling Medical Schools Network: a collaboration to grow our rural medical workforce.Brie Turner is a Senior Research Officer in The University of Sydney School of Rural Health. Brie works on research in support of the Rural Health Multidisciplinary Training (RHMT) Program and Murray-Darling Medical Schools Network (MDMSN) initiatives both of which aim to improve the distribution of the medical workforce in rural and remote areas.
PP33Ms Hovea Winston The University of Sydney The long-term influence of simulation and virtual reality training: A qualitative study of FREDeX in Western NSW. Hovea Winston is a medical student born and raised in Geraldton, Western Australia who completed her undergraduate degree in Sport and Exercise Science in Perth, WA. She is an avid AFL fan, formerly playing hockey, waterpolo, cricket, surf lifesaving and was a volunteer ambulance officer in WA. This is her first exposure into completing a research project.   

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Plenary Session:

Driving Equity in Research: Supporting Regional, Rural, Remote and Indigenous Communities

We will be joined by Dr Natasha Friend and Dr Bronwyn Wyatt from the National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC) Equity Team. They will provide an overview of NHMRC’s equity policy activities, with a particular focus on gender, regional, remote and rural (RRR) equity and indigenous equity activities

This presentation will be followed by a session exploring the barriers faced by regional, rural and remote researchers with discussions on advancing equity across the research sector to complete the session.

Dr Natasha Friend is the Assistant Director Equity in the Research Quality and Advice Branch at the National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC). Natasha helps lead NHMRC equity policy across priority areas including gender and rural, regional and remote equity. Natasha completed her PhD in the genetics of multiple myeloma at the South Australian Health and Medical Research Institute. She has worked at both NHMRC and the Australian Research Council in several roles including grants administration, evaluation and policy.

Dr Bronwyn Wyatt is a Senior Policy Officer in the Research Quality and Advice Branch at the National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC), supporting initiatives that promote equity in and through health and medical research. Bronwyn has a PhD in Biological Anthropology from the Australian National University and previously worked as a Data Analyst at the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare across a range of national health data programs.

 

Workshop:

Digital Health, AI and Equity in Rural Settings

Presenters: Abe Warwick, Ged Hawthorn
  1. Visionflex: An interactive experience with a live connection from the workshop room back to the Visionflex demonstration suite in Sydney. You will watch a real consultation happen across several hundred kilometres, with live diagnostics coming back in real time. A mobile kit will be in situ so you can pick up and handle the devices themselves, including the examination camera, digital stethoscope and camera glasses.
  2. Pharma8: Improving Medication Safety and Buying Back Time for Rural Clinicians
    As a pharmacist inside NSW Health, Ged designed implemented and researched a virtual clinical pharmacy service that scaled to over 30 health services across Western NSW, bringing clinical pharmacist input to rural sites that had never had it before. That’s what equity in rural health actually looks like in practice: not a scaled-down version of a city service, but genuinely new access where none existed. However the research behind it told a harder truth: even at scale, the service was only reaching 1/3 of patients on discharge. In a fiscally constrained environment, more staff wasn’t the answer, smart technology was. That insight led Ged to found PharmaM8.
    Reconciling medications on discharge and preparing the required paperwork can eat 20–30 minutes of a clinician’s day, one of the most preventable sources of patient harm made worse by exactly the kind of time pressure rural and remote clinicians face every shift. In this session, watch unformatted, jargon-filled medication information be transformed in minutes into a verified, patient-friendly medication list and interim medication chart. Attendees will see how digital health and AI, applied carefully and with clinical scrutiny, can close the coverage gap by giving clinicians time back to spend more time in direct patient care.
Abe leads Customer Success at Visionflex, an Australian health technology company whose virtual care platform is used across aged care, Aboriginal Community Controlled Health Organisations, remote and rural health services, mine sites and Antarctic research stations. He works with health services across Australia and New Zealand to turn telehealth equipment into models of care that actually get used, with a particular focus on remote and rural settings where workforce shortages make hub and spoke delivery the only realistic option. Abe is interested in the practical side of digital health equity, including what happens when technology is funded and installed without a model of care to support it.
Ged Hawthorn is a pharmacist and healthtech founder with a growing interest in rural health research. Ged helped design and evaluate a virtual clinical pharmacy service and then led the expansion to over 30 health services across rural and remote Western NSW. This work has contributed to six peer-reviewed publications, including a stepped-wedge randomised controlled trial (BMC Health Services Research) and a recent economic evaluation modelling the service’s return on investment (Journal of Pharmacy Practice and Research, 2026). 
Ged‘s career has been built in rural and remote pharmacy, from sole pharmacist in charge of a remote-area pharmacy in Cobar, NSW, to Senior Regional Pharmacist with WA Country Health Service in Broome, where he worked in the region’s telechemotherapy unit, a unique model improving access to chemotherapy, while also covering medication supply across the entire Kimberley region, an area of over 420,000 square kilometres. He remains a practising Senior Clinical Pharmacist and Pharmacy Educator at Western NSW Local Health District, and is a guest lecturer at the University of Sydney and Charles Sturt University.
Across his public health career, Ged has built a strong record of innovation, leading new models of care and designing and implementing digital tools within NSW Health. This has been recognised with numerous awards at both local and state levels. He is now applying that same drive to innovate from outside the constraints of a slow-moving public system, Founding Hawthorn Healthtech and building PharmaM8, a digital health tool that cuts the administrative work and improves medication safety on transfer of care, a finalist in the 2025 Innovate with nbn Awards. He is a Board Certified Geriatric Pharmacist (American College of Clinical Pharmacy), a Fellow of Advanced Pharmacy Australia in Critical Care and Education (FANZCAP), and completed Cohort 3 of the Australian Clinical Entrepreneur Program in 2025.

Workshop:

Oral health is everyone’s business: Collaborative Oral Health Care in Rural Communities

  1. From Dental Chair to Primary Care: Integrating Oral and Systemic Health Associate Professor Shalinie King
    Rural Placement Programme Academic Lead, The University of Sydney Dental School, and Oral Health Programme Lead, Westmead Applied Research Centre

  2. Oral health advice in non-dental settings
    Dr Lauren Church
    Lecturer, The University of Sydney Dental School 

  3. Digital platforms to improve access to paediatric care (Vspec project)
    Associate Professor Mel Nott
    Principal Research Fellow | Three Rivers Department of Rural Health Charles Sturt University

  4. Caring and call to action for young smiles: International Recommendations for Children’s Oral Health
    Associate Professor Marco Benini Paschoal 
    Research lead in the Centre for Rural Dentistry and Oral Health at Charles Sturt University
Presenters:

Shalinie King is an Associate Professor with the University of Sydney Dental School where she is the academic lead for Rural Placements, and program lead for Oral Health Research at the Westmead Applied Research Centre (WARC). Shalinie is a practising clinician with experience working in both the public and private sectors, she has extensive teaching experience and recently completed a 12-month term as Director of Academic Education at the Sydney Dental School.

Her research interests include understanding the associations between oral health and overall health, developing and evaluating strategies to improve community access to basic oral health information focusing on the use of digital technologies to support oral health promotion. Her work aims to design and implement new models of care that integrate oral and overall health care and, that improve community awareness and knowledge about the importance of good oral health in contributing to better overall health outcomes.

Dr Lauren Church is a Lecturer with the University of Sydney Dental School, where she is third-year unit of study coordinator for the Bachelor of Oral Health. Lauren is a registered clinician with public and private sector experience and teaches BOH students in the acute care setting at Sydney Dental Hospital, where she fosters interprofessional learning between BOH and DMD students.

She recently completed her PhD at the University of Sydney. Her research examines the connection between oral health and cardiovascular disease, oral health education in hospital settings, and protocols for integrating digital oral health interventions into cardiac rehabilitation. Her work aims to shape compassionate, patient-centred clinicians and to advance oral health within broader public health strategies. Lauren is Deputy Chair of the Oral Health Association of Australia (NSW Branch) and NSW Oral Health Representative for the Public Health Association of Australia.

Melissa is a regionally based occupational therapist working with rural communities, health service users, families, health professionals and service providers. She has a strong background in collaborative and partnership-based research that focuses on translating evidence into healthcare practice, supporting health professionals to build sustainable research networks, co-design and co-production with community stakeholders, and evidencing impacts of healthcare initiatives.

AProf Marco Paschoal is an Associate Professor in Clinical Dentistry at Charles Sturt University, (Orange Campus) and a specialist paediatric dentist with a strong commitment to advancing child oral health through research, education, and clinical practice. His research focuses on developmental dental defects, particularly molar hypomineralisation, alongside cariology, and evidence-based approaches to paediatric dental care. He has published extensively in international peer-reviewed journals and is passionate about translating research findings into meaningful improvements in clinical care and health outcomes for children and adolescents. Beyond his academic role, he has actively contributed to the advancement of oral health research through professional leadership and scholarly service. He serves as the IADR Western NSW Councillor and is an active member of the Australian and New Zealand Society of Paediatric Dentistry (ANZSPD) and the International Association of Paediatric Dentistry (IAPD). He also contributes to scientific publishing as a Board Member of Scientific Reports, an Editorial Board Member of BMC Oral Health, and a Guest Editor for BMC Pediatrics, supporting the dissemination of high-quality research and evidence-based practice worldwide.

Workshop:

Doing research that matters: How to plan program evaluation in rural health services

This workshop aims to provide an overview of key issues and considerations in planning and undertaking evaluation of health and wellbeing programs. Participants will be introduced to a simple step-by-step approach that can be applied successfully in many health program contexts. The workshop will draw on a case study of a Marathon Health program that has recently completed this evaluation process.

Read about the process: https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1111/ajr.70068
Presenter: Matt Thomas

Matt Thomas is a clinical psychologist working in the role of Principal Practice Lead with Marathon Health, based in Bathurst, NSW. His role includes leading research activities focussed on evaluation of innovative rural health services and rural health workforce development.  He is an Adjunct Associate Professor in the School of Psychology at Charles Sturt University and in the Discipline of Psychiatry and Mental Health at the University of NSW.

Workshop:

Innovating together: A practical workshop on co-designing for rural health research

This workshop aims to equip participants with knowledge and practical skills for engaging health consumers in research co-design and implementation. Facilitated by an experienced team of health consumers and researchers, this will be a engaging and dynamic workshop that unpacks the co-design process.
 
Facilitators: Carrie Hayter, Health Consumers NSW and Melissa Nott, Three Rivers Department of Rural Health

Carrie Hayter works to amplify the human rights and living experience of people who use aged care, disability and health care services and has over 30 years’ experience working alongside people who use aged care, disability and health services to improve and change service systems. Carrie has a Bachelor of Social Work (Honours) from the University of NSW, a Masters of Economics (Honours) from the University of Sydney, is a 2017 graduate of the Sydney Leadership Program, and a Distinguished Member of the Australian Association of Gerontology.  Carrie has living experience of Coronary Artery Disease and is a consumer representative on the St Vincents Private Hospital Consumer Advisory Committee, the St Vincents Private Hospital Clinical Governance Committee  and the Westmead Applied Research Centre in Sydney.  She is a Consumer Adviser on the Victor Chang Cardiac Research Institute, Consumer and Community Involvement Working group that is working to improve consumer and community involvement in research across the Institute. Between 2021 and 2024, she worked for Health Consumers NSW as the Consumer Engagement Manager, Health and Medical Research, working to build the capability and capacity of consumers and researchers to involve consumers and the community in health and medical research. Carrie’s vision is for all people and communities to live their best lives supported by service systems underpinned by human rights and evidence-based practice.   Find out more at https://www.carriehayter.com/.

Melissa is a regionally based occupational therapist working with rural communities, health service users, families, health professionals and service providers. She has a strong background in collaborative and partnership-based research that focuses on translating evidence into healthcare practice, supporting health professionals to build sustainable research networks, co-design and co-production with community stakeholders, and evidencing impacts of healthcare initiatives.

Workshop:

Strengthening the Rural Health Workforce Through Research

Research often begins with a simple question: Why does this happen? Could we do this differently?

Designed for clinicians with emerging curiosity about research, this interactive workshop explores how everyday challenges, observations, and quality improvement activities can become meaningful research opportunities. Through a researcher panel and practical group activities, participants will learn how to identify workplace problems, develop research questions, and take their first steps towards research that can improve rural health services and patient outcomes.

Presenters: Luke Marks and Sharon Laver

Luke Marks is a Research Coordinator, nurse leader, and PhD candidate with more than 24 years’ experience across rural and regional healthcare. His clinical background spans emergency, paediatric, community, renal, perioperative, intensive care, and nursing leadership roles. Luke currently leads initiatives focused on nursing and midwifery workforce development, leadership, research, advanced practice, and professional standards. Passionate about building research capacity within the healthcare workforce, Luke is the founder of the Nursing and Midwifery Research Excellence Centre (NaMREC), an Adjunct Senior Lecturer with Charles Sturt University, and is currently undertaking a PhD exploring leadership practice among Advanced Practice Nurses in regional New South Wales. A Wiradjuri man living and working on Wiradjuri Country, Luke is committed to supporting clinicians to translate curiosity, quality improvement activities, and everyday practice challenges into meaningful research that strengthens rural health services and improves patient outcomes.

Sharon is a Registered Nurse and academic at Charles Sturt University (CSU) with extensive experience in community-based nursing, health service management, and organisational development. Her experience extends from major metropolitan hospitals to rural and small remote Australian health services and has included major state level project work. Her research interests include transition to professional practice, rural nursing workforce preparation, development, retention, and capacity building. Sharon has been working with the Western NSW LHD Nursing and Midwifery Research Excellence Centre (NaMREC) to build research capacity and capability through a number of projects. If accepted, this workshop will be co-facilitated by NaMREC project participants and CSU partners.

Proudly sponsored by:

Workshop:

Things We Have Learnt the Hard Way: An Introduction to Mental Health Research for New Starters

Mental health research is full of unexpected challenges. In this interactive workshop, we’ll discuss some of the common pitfalls and practical solutions we’ve learned through experience. it focuses on the practical things that don’t make it into research methods textbooks. Join us to explore literacy-friendly participant information sheets, distress and wellbeing protocols, reducing research burden on participants and clinicians, recruiting realistic samples in rural communities, and choosing the right outcome measures. Bring your questions and examples from your own projects. Experienced researchers are encouraged to come along and share their learnings too.
Presenters: Professor Julaine Allan, Dr Nicole Snowdon, Dr Kate Freire
Proudly Sponsored by:

Plenary Session:

Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander leadership in research

We will hear from Michael Newman, Deputy CEO of the Lowitja Institute, who will provide an overview of the Institute’s work. He will be followed by Judy Johnson, Chair of the Riverina Medical and Dental Aboriginal Corporation, and Simone Sherriff, Senior Research Fellow at the Poche Centre for Indigenous Health, University of Sydney, who will present a Lowitja Institute-funded research case study from Western NSW.

Nicole Turner, CEO of the Aboriginal Health & Medical Research Council of NSW, will then discuss the importance of strategic research and its role in improving Aboriginal health outcomes. The session will conclude with an opportunity for questions and discussion.

Following this, Jamie Newman will introduce the Orange Aboriginal Medical Service (OAMS). We will then hear from Fiona Clarke, Clinical Administration Lead at OAMS, who will present research from the Antecedents of Renal Disease in Aboriginal Children and Young People (ARDAC) Kidney Health Research Program. Anne-Marie Mepham, Chronic Care Coordinator at OAMS, will then present Screen Your Way, a cervical screening self-collection project.

The session will conclude with a further opportunity for Q&A and discussion.

Networking Session:

In this session, you’ll work your way through a fun set of questions to discover new contacts and connections. It’s a networking adventure, with maps of where you travelled – and maybe even some treasure – at the end.

You’ll need to bring your mobile phone along to this session to take part.

 

Dr Anthony Brown

Dr. Anthony Brown is the Research Manager at Health Consumers NSW (HCNSW). HCNSW is the peak consumer group in the state, it is an independent, membership-based charity that works to ensure that health consumers (patients, carers, and families) are involved in the decisions that impact on them. Growing up in the Central West has given Anthony a strong connection to regional communities and a firsthand understanding of the factors that influence health and wellbeing outside major cities. Anthony is both a strong advocate for consumer involvement in research and an experienced researcher. Before joining HCNSW he was the Manager of the Men’s Health Information and Resource Centre at the University of Western Sydney, where he completed a doctorate (PhD) looking at retired men’s community engagement.

Dr Andrew Goodman

Dr Andrew Goodman is an Aboriginal man from Iningai Country in Queensland. Prior to his PhD, Dr Goodman spent more than 13 years as an Indigenous Healthcare Worker in Queensland, focusing on cardiac and healthcare services with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples. Currently, he is a Research Scientist with CSIROs digital health program, where he leads research initiatives focused on building the evidence base for digital health technologies that align with the priorities, interests, and needs of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples. Central to his approach is the principle of “Relationships before Partnerships,” which emphasises trust, reciprocity, and accountability as the foundation for meaningful collaboration with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples and organisations.