Women doctors share their rural experiences in June 9 program
May 25, 2009A new Rural Health Education Foundation television program airing on Tuesday 9th June follows a group of women GPs in a range of rural practice settings and locations.
Women in Rural Medicine examines the professional and personal lives of seven women doctors who share their experiences working in rural Australia. During the hour-long program the doctors d
iscuss how they have overcome the challenges of being a female GP in rural Australia, including raising a family and being an active member of the community.
Rural medicine no longer a man’s world
“Medicine was once an almost exclusively male occupation, especially in rural communities,” says Rural Health Education Foundation CEO Don Perlgut. “But 40 percent of young doctors taking up rural general practice today are female.”
Photo: RDAA Female Doctors Group
“This new program reveals what life is really like for the growing number of women who choose to practice medicine in rural and remote Australia,” Mr Perlgut says. “It also explores the different approaches to patient care that some women GPs take, compared to their male counterparts.”
In-depth case studies
Presented by Dr Norman Swan and Dr Jenny May, Chair of the RDAA Female Doctors Group and a GP from Tamworth, NSW, Women in Rural Medicine features detailed profiles of several female doctors working in rural environments: Miriam Grotowski (Tamworth, NSW), Sheila Cronin (Cloncurry and Gold Coast, QLD), Nola Maxfield (Wonthaggi, VIC), Jen Delima (Alice Springs, NT), Ruth Stewart (Camperdown, VIC), and Elizabeth Parsimei & Annette Newson (both from Barmera, SA).
Program funding
Women in Rural Medicine is funded by the Australian Government Department of Health and Ageing and produced in association with the Rural Doctors Association of Australia.
Broadcast details
Women in Rural Medicine will be broadcast across the Rural Health Education Foundation’s satellite television network on Tuesday 9th June at 8.00pm (AEST), with repeats at 8.00pm Perth time that same evening (two hours later) and 12.30pm on Friday 12th June.
Available on DVD and the web
DVD copies of this program will be available after the broadcasts via our website.
The program will also be available free on the Internet for viewing via web-streamed video or listening via an audio podcast.
Photo: Dr Ruth Stewart, Director of Women in Rural Practice, ACRRM
No shortage of women in rural doctor shortfall
Despite increasing numbers of females entering the medical workforce, rural medicine is almost the only branch of the profession with a shortage of applicants. Recent research has indicated that significant future workforce shortages are likely to occur in rural and remote areas over the next decade. This is due, in part, to the retirement of older rural male General Practitioners.
Since women are set to become the next generation of rural medical practitioners, an evolution of working styles may also occur. For example, research has demonstrated that, in general, women value psychosocial aspects of health more than men do, and place more emphasis on wholistic care, preventive medicine and counselling.
More information
For more information about this program - including presenter details, access instructions and associated educational resources – refer to the online program summary or contact the Foundation.