Top line-up of keynote speakers for Marlborough national rural health conference

The line-up of keynote speakers includes Doctor of Psychiatry Hinemoa Elder, Dame Tariana Turia, Emeritus Professor Dr Paul Worley (Australia’s first National Rural Health Commissioner) and Minister of Health Dr David Clark in what promises to be three days of cutting edge health education, discussion and debate.

Other keynotes include American remote medicine specialist Michelle Boltz, who will share her experience as Chief of Village Services for the North West Arctic Alaska, working together with the Alaska State Community Health Aide programme providing full spectrum primary care in remote villages across the state.

Issue on the agenda will be the state of the Primary Response in Medical Emergency (PRIME) service, challenges in rural medical/health education, the ongoing shortage of rural GPs in New Zealand and the impending retirement bubble of GPs.

There will be 40 concurrent session covering five streams – medical/nursing, research, student, management and community. Topics include diabetes, prostate cancer, medicines adherence, cvd risk assessment, creating sustainable rural health models, depression and anxiety, navigating the immigration pathway, urban versus rural health disparities, Maori use of the health service, and technological innovations for mental health, to name a few.

There will also be a day of pre-conference workshops on Thursday, April 4 with topics including nursing, alcohol, infant resuscitation, insulin management, rural hospital medicines update and research presentations. To view the programme click HERE.

An awards’ night, featuring the Peter Snow Memorial Award, Rural General Practice of the Year Award and Division of Rural Hospital Medicine Fellowships, will be held on Saturday evening, April 6 at the Marlborough Event Centre.

Main conference days are Friday, April 5 and Saturday, April 6 – keynote and concurrent sessions.
The venue is the Marlborough Convention Centre and ASB Theatre, April 4-7.