18.3 “She’ll be right” – women leading the next wave of rural doctors
Tracks
Crown Ballroom 3B
| Saturday, October 25, 2025 |
| 10:30 AM - 11:00 AM |
| Crown Ballroom 3B |
Details
Format: Practical workshop (90-minute)
Speaker
Dr Sue Harrison
Slo Victoria
ACRRM
“She’ll be right” – women leading the next wave of rural doctors
10:30 AM - 12:10 PMAbstract Overview
Women in rural medicine are delivering frontline care, leading innovation, advocating for equity, and strengthening the fabric of rural health systems. Through a Q&A panel discussion and table activities, this forum (a collaboration between RDAA’s Female Doctors Group and the RACGP's Doctors for Women in Rural Medicine committee) will explore the vital and evolving role of women doctors in shaping the future of healthcare in rural Australia, and celebrate their leadership, resilience, and innovation in transforming rural healthcare.
Demographics in medicine are changing with more female doctors graduating from medical schools. This forum will explore barriers and enablers for women in taking up rural medical careers, contrasting the perspectives of graduates emerging from rural training pathways with those of a more mature cohort who have experienced and overcome the challenges, to identify needs, gaps, and possible avenues for advocacy.
We will highlight real stories of women in rural medicine who are making a tangible difference to their patients and communities through their leadership, mentorship and advocacy within their practices and in their local and wider communities. Their advocacy and work in public health and other facets of the health system has significant clinical, organisational, and policy impacts across the country.
Demographics in medicine are changing with more female doctors graduating from medical schools. This forum will explore barriers and enablers for women in taking up rural medical careers, contrasting the perspectives of graduates emerging from rural training pathways with those of a more mature cohort who have experienced and overcome the challenges, to identify needs, gaps, and possible avenues for advocacy.
We will highlight real stories of women in rural medicine who are making a tangible difference to their patients and communities through their leadership, mentorship and advocacy within their practices and in their local and wider communities. Their advocacy and work in public health and other facets of the health system has significant clinical, organisational, and policy impacts across the country.
Biography
Dr Sue Harrison is a Rural Generalist (anaesthetics and emergency medicine) in Echuca, Victoria. In her 40 years as a rural doctor, Sue has been a resolute voice for rural medicine on numerous committees and in many forums. She is also a medical educator and supervisor and is the current Chair of RDAA’s Female Doctors Group.
Prof Jenny May AM
National Rural Health Commissioner
Co-presenter
Biography
Professor Jenny May AM has been passionate about rural health since her first rural medical student placement in 1980 and then as a trainee rural doctor at Tamworth Hospital in 1985.
Professor May’s vast and extensive knowledge working across Australia and internationally has provided multiple opportunities to contribute through research on health workforce matters. She now calls Tamworth home and has had the incredible privilege to live and work with her doctor husband and family in a number of remote and regional locations.
Professor May holds fellowships with RACGP and ACRRM and has extensive experience in clinical practice, research, education and rural health advocacy. In 2016 she was awarded a Member of the Order of Australia (AM) for significant service to community health in rural and regional areas, as a general practitioner, member of professional medical groups, and as an educator.
With over 35 years of working and supporting rural, regional and remote health care, her appointment as the third National Rural Health Commissioner has been widely welcomed.
Prof Belinda O'Sullivan
Professor
Monash University
Co-presenter
Biography
Assoc Prof Belinda O’Sullivan, Monash University, is a rural health systems researcher with a focus on workforce capacity building, access, quality, and distribution. Together with researchers from the University of Queensland and James Cook University, she has recently undertaken an ACRRM grant study of current and mature Rural Generalist women and their career enablers and barriers.
Dr Christie Rodda
RACGP
Co-presenter
Biography
Dr Christie Rodda is a GP-RG with an advanced skill in Small Town Rural General Practice from Beechworth, Victoria. She is Chair of RACGP's Doctors for Women in Rural Medicine (DWRM) committee, a member of RACGP's Rural Faculty and has advisory roles with the AMAV and Victorian Department of Health.
Dr Claire Arundell
FACRRM / RDAA
Co-presenter
Biography
Dr Claire Arundell is a Rural Generalist Anaesthetist who grew up in country Victoria. She is also an ACRRM medical educator and ACRRM course facilitator and is one of the convenors of ACRRM’s inaugural Emerging Leaders Conference held on Wadjemup (Rottnest Island) 19-21 October 2025. Claire has established a strong relationship with Victorian health stakeholders and is passionate about supporting the next generation of RGs. Her experience includes being a board member of the Rural Doctors Association of Victoria, and a Director of Sandpiper Australia Ltd. She is also an active member of the community, clocking up over 10 years of service with the CFA.
Dr Danielle Dries
Board Director
ACRRM
Co-presenter
Biography
Dr Danielle Dries is a Kaurna Aboriginal woman from South Australia who has a passion for rural and remote health and improving Indigenous health outcomes. She has an extensive track record for promoting interdisciplinary care and the use of allied health services in rural and remote Australia. Through her dual qualifications in medicine and physiotherapy, Danielle has built extensive experience in rural and remote health with multiple rural placements across New South Wales as well as Tasmania (Sorell), Northern Territory (Yuendumu) and Queensland (Palm Island, Rockhampton). Among other achievements, Danielle has been a Board Director of Indigenous Allied Health Australia (2016-20) and was the ACT Junior Doctor of the Year 2018. Danielle has completed her advanced skill in Obstetrics and Gynaecology and is currently working in an Aboriginal Medical Service.
Miss Baneen Alrubayi
Resident Medical Officer
Albury Wodonga Health
Co-presenter
Biography
Dr Baneen Alrubi’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. Raised in Cobram, a rural town on the Murray River, she developed a deep understanding of the healthcare challenges faced by rural communities. Her passion for rural surgery has been shaped by diverse clinical experiences in both generalist and specialist surgery, alongside leadership roles in rural health advocacy, including mentorship under Adjunct Professor Ruth Stewart, former National Rural Health Commissioner. Baneen was recognised as Moira Shire’s Young Citizen of the Year in 2019 and awarded the NSW Rural Women’s Scholarship in 2023. Most recently, she has been selected as the next WA Country Health Service ASPIRE Surgical Doctor, where she will be based in Albany and Bunbury to pursue training in rural general surgery.
