Community & Business
29 May, 2026
Thirty year partnership to improve medical care in the bush
Thirty years of partnership between the Rural Doctors Network and the CWA.
By Jeni Milligan
Thirty years of partnership between the Rural Doctors Network and the Country Women’s Association of NSW were celebrated at the opening of the 2026 CWA of NSW State Conference in Forster, where Rural Doctors Network chief executive officer Richard Colbran delivered the opening address.
The partnership began in 1996, when the CWA was preparing to celebrate its 75th anniversary and Rural Doctors Network was still less than a decade old.
Rural healthcare had long been a priority for the CWA, which established emergency and maternity hospitals in country communities, while Rural Doctors Network focused on strengthening the rural medical workforce.
“Rural Doctors Network works to build health access for all, but our founding vision came from family doctors in country NSW, so it has been our privilege to partner with a grassroots community group like CWA NSW for these three decades,” Mr Colbran said.
“The agenda for this year’s CWA conference tackled the big issues on the minds of country people - health, education and infrastructure - so it was my great honour to be invited to participate and celebrate a great milestone and to reflect on how we can build on that legacy over the next three decades.”
CWA of NSW president Tanya Jolly said the organisations had worked closely through the Bush Bursary program and broader health advocacy.
“It was wonderful to have Richard open this year’s conference given the significant milestone we’ve reached with Rural Doctors Network this year,” Mrs Jolly said.
“For the past 30 years the association has supported RDN with Bush Bursaries, and we’ve worked together to advocate on a raft of health service issues for remote, rural and regional areas.”
The Bush Bursary program, established in 1996 with support from local government shires, is administered by Rural Doctors Network with funding from councils and the CWA.
Since its inception, 511 medical and nursing students have undertaken placements in rural communities, with a recent study finding 54 per cent were still working in regional, rural or remote areas.
Over the summer of 2025-26, 33 medical, nursing and midwifery students participated in placements across rural NSW.
Former bursary recipient Amanda Brownlow, now a GP at Narromine, said the Bush Bursary program offered students a valuable introduction to country medicine.
“It offers the chance for people who may be ‘rural curious’ to have firsthand experience of rural health without the commitment of an extended placement,” Dr Brownlow said.
Allie Bicknell completed her placement in Canowindra with Ros Bullock, who hosts two medical students through the scheme each year, and said the experience confirmed her ambition to become a rural generalist.
“I came into medicine not having a background in health and the bursary gave me an opportunity to see the whole approach to the care of a rural community,” Ms Bicknell said.
“I was involved in every facet of the patient journey in the health care system. I spent time with doctors, nurses, allied health and pharmacists, and I was able to speak with patients about their experiences in the health care system. Having this insight so early in my degree cemented my wish to become a rural generalist.”
At the conclusion of the Forster conference, delegates endorsed more than 50 motions to guide the CWA’s advocacy priorities over the next 12 months, including a range of community health initiatives.