Rural and remote health in Australia: how to avert the deepening health care drought

Many voices proposing innovative strategies — which way forward?

Australia is considered by much of the world as the “great outdoors”, with tourists travelling from afar to see our landmark deserts, rainforests and other natural wonders. Yet we are, in fact, an urbanised nation, with fewer and fewer Australians living outside capital cities. And with the shrinking of our rural population, a growing problem has emerged: increasingly noticeable disparities in health outcomes, with people in the bush generally doing less well than those in the cities.