Nominations open for new Rural Community/Consumer Board Director position at the Australian College of Rural and Remote Medicine

The Australian College of Rural and Remote Medicine (ACRRM) is strengthening its commitment to improving health outcomes in rural and remote communities by inviting nominations for a Rural Community/Consumer Director on the College Board.

Dr Michael Beckoff, acting ACRRM President, said the intention to appoint a rural community or consumer representative to the College Board reflects the College’s strong focus on training a skilled rural workforce that meets the needs of rural and remote communities.

“ACRRM trains rural generalist doctors who work to the full scope of practice and have the depth and breadth of skills to enable them to provide a wide range of rural and remote health care”, he said.

“We need to ensure that our curricula and professional development programs are relevant and responsive to the changing needs and contexts of rural and remote practice.

“It will be invaluable to have rural community input to assist us in this area, and also to bring a non-clinical community perspective to the work of the College.”

Dr Beckoff said the appointment was the first step in a wider strategy to provide rural community representatives with opportunities to contribute to governance and policy development at a number of levels within ACRRM.

“ACRRM is responding to a growing body of evidence which documents the benefits of consumer and community representation in the governance and activities of professional medical colleges, both in achieving improved overall health outcomes and making a positive contribution to organisational governance, policy and decision making processes”, he said.

“This reflects our commitment to continually improve the quality of our training, governance and operations.

“Medical services are an integral part of the economic and social fabric of rural and remote communities, and most rural doctors are community leaders and advocates. This will be a strong reciprocal arrangement in which ACRRM will benefit, but it will also allow the College to engage with rural and remote communities to improve health outcomes and raise awareness of rural health issues more generally.”

More information about the role, together with a nomination form, is available on the ACRRM website.