Baneen’s story is one of a refugee experience, having travelled to Australia in-utero, crossing the perilous seas via an illegal boat with parents who had dreams of a safer life and to set roots in a new community. For her that community was Cobram, a beautiful rural town on the banks of the Murray river. Her early exposure to inequalities ignited a passion for community service, culminating in her recognition as the 2019 Moira Shire Young Australian of the Year. Today, Baneen is a junior doctor at Albury Wodonga Health and is passionate about developing her leadership skills to advocate for rural health, global health and women’s health. She is a research assistant; a recipient of the 2023 NSW Rural Women scholarship; a NSW RDN resident rural medical officer cadet; a former vice chair of the National Rural Health Student Network and a mentee to the adjunct Professor Ruth Stewart.

Dr Ruth Stewart is Associate Professor of Rural Medicine, Director of Rural Clinical Training and Support at James Cook University. She lives and works on Thursday Island as a Senior Medical Officer with obstetric credentialing. Ruth is Vice Chair of the Torres and Cape York Hospital and Health Service. Before moving to Queensland in 2012 Ruth and her husband Dr Anthony Brown worked for twenty-two years as procedural GPs in Camperdown in South West Victoria. Ruth was on the ACRRM Board from 2002 to 2012 as director for Women in Rural Practice, Victorian Director and as Vice President. She is currently Chair of the ACRRM Education Council. She has represented ACRRM on many committees including the Consultative Committee on the Diploma of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, and the Nurse Practitioner Advisory Group to the Department of Health and Ageing and as an executive member of the Expert Advisory Committee for the National Evidence Based Antenatal Care Guidelines. In December 2013 Ruth was granted a PhD from Flinders University for her thesis on a rural maternity managed clinical network. Her research interests include rural maternity services, rural health and rural medical education.

Dr Sue Velovski in the Chair of RDAA’s Rural Specialist Group (RSG), a committee member of RDANSW and the 2022 co-Rural Doctor of the Year. She is a General Surgeon with a particular interest in cancer and trauma surgery, practising in the Northern Rivers area of NSW. Sue continues to be a passionate advocate for all rural doctors across Australia and for health professionals and services in her community which continues to experience significant distress as a result of major flooding.

Throughout my journey, I've developed a keen interest in other cultures. Born in France, I attended school in Africa and have lived across Australia for the past 17 years. After traveling to over 40 countries, I decided to pursue medicine as a mature-age student, starting from scratch and earning a Dean's medal for my academic success. I am currently a Hospital Medical Officer at Albury Wodonga Health, working towards becoming a GP-RG. My passion for rural and remote health grew stronger after completing several placements in Central Australia. In 2021, I was elected Chair of the National Rural Health Student Network (NRHSN), representing over 12,000 rural health students in 29 university rural health clubs. I have always embraced the opportunity to give back to my community by facilitating over 150 Peer Assisted Study Sessions (PASS) and mentoring over 30 facilitators, earning an international teaching award. I've also received prestigious awards such as the NSW Rural Resident Medical Officer Cadetship, the John Flynn Placement Program, and the RACGP Rural Medical Student Award. To further pursue my aspirations of improving the health sector, I also worked as a management consultant with KPMG.