Working in partnership to strengthen remote healthcare

 

We wish to advise that the Department of Health and Aged Care will discontinue the federally funded Remote Area Health Corps (RAHC) program, effective from 30 June 2024.

We are committed to honouring placements already secured until 30 June 2024.

For alternative government-supported locum services, please consider contacting:

If you have any questions about current placements or services, please contact RAHC on 1300 697 24

Why partner with RAHC?

Workforce specialists

Access short-term placements of health professionals where and when they’re needed from an organisation who values partnerships and self-determination.

Culture at the centre

Build your capability with our well credentialed health professionals who we support with cultural education. Health professionals learn culture continuously while on placement to provide holistic healthcare.

Place-based

RAHC works with, not against, local organisations and remote health professionals. We work in partnership with Aboriginal communities to design solutions and build locally-led services.

Indigenous-led

RAHC’s board and leadership is majority Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people. They guide our Indigenous-led, -governed and -focused strategy to connect and work in genuine partnership with Aboriginal services in the NT.

Healthcare designed for local needs

RAHC is an Indigenous-led and governed remote health workforce program.

Our majority Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander board sets our direction. We’re about strengthening the community-controlled health sector.

To do this, we deploy urban-based health professionals for workforce placement solutions. This is all done in partnership with:

  • the community
  • health services
  • health professionals
  • RAHC’s clinical, cultural and workforce teams.

Together we find solutions that fit local needs. These solutions help services in the community to keep working well into the future.

Communities we serve

Equality and self-determination

We work with communities in remote and very remote NT to support self-determination. We believe Aboriginal communities deserve equality in access to healthcare and the right to choose how that happens.

Our work aligns with the National Agreement for Closing the Gap Priority Reforms 1 and 2:

  1. Formal Partnerships and Shared Decision Making.
  2. Building the Community-Controlled Sector.

To do this, the Australian government funds RAHC to deliver:

  • the RAHC program – building and strengthening remote primary healthcare workforce in the NT
  • the RAWR program – deploying General Practitioners and Registered Nurses to remote communities around Australia

Always supported with RAHC

We support healthcare professionals to do short-term paid placements (3 weeks to 12 weeks) in partnership with remote Aboriginal communities in the NT.

Enjoy continuous learning when you work with RAHC. We provide:

  • cultural and clinical orientation to prepare health professionals for placement and ongoing, 24/7 support
  • help with travel and accommodation
  • access to online learning.

To take part in the RAHC program, health professionals must meet some minimum criteria as a:

  • General Practitioner
  • Registered Nurse
  • Dentist
  • Dental Therapist
  • Dental Assistant
  • Audiologist.

News

See what’s happening around RAHC and in the communities we serve.

The Remote Area Health Corps in 2023

Public health alert - Penicillinase-producing Neisseria gonorrhoeae (PPNG): changes to treatment recommendations for gonorrhoea Northern Territory wide

Gonorrhoea is a sexually transmitted bacterial infection that most commonly infects the urethra and the cervix. It can also infect the anus and throat.

Current Situation

Northern Territory Immunisation Schedule update - 1 November 2023 

The Northern Territory (NT) Immunisation Schedules have been updated to reflect the introduction of the shingles vaccine Shingrix® to the National Immunisation Program from 1 November 2023.

Supporting our community: online Social and Emotional Wellbeing Resources during the Voice referendum

The National Aboriginal Community Controlled Health Organisation (NACCHO) and the Australian Indigenous HealthInfoNet have launched a portal that brings together a collection

National Nursing Forum 2023

The Remote Area Health Corps (RAHC) team had a great time at the National Nursing Forum in Adelaide this year.

Dental Health Week

Dental Health Week takes place every year in the first week of August. In 2023 Dental Health Week focuses on the mouth and whole-body connection with the theme Mind, Body, Mouth – it's all connected.

RAHC and Miwatj partner to support Galiwinku

In May 2023, RAHC partnered with Miwatj to deliver child health checks and assist with a backlog of immunisations in Galiwinku.

Donate life week - Neesha's story

This week is Donate Life Week, and we would like to share Neesha's story.

Neesha is a young woman from Darwin in her 20s who has been waiting four years for a life-saving kidney donation. 

Health Alert: Increase in cases of Crusted Scabies

There has been an increasing number of crusted scabies cases observed across the Northern Territory (NT), with a 35% increase in 2023 to date, compared with recent years.

RAHC - Our Story

A video about how to get involved with Remote Area Health Corps (RAHC).

RAHC is a programme designed to increase the pool of urban-based health professionals available for work in Indigenous communities by attracting, recruiting and orienting them. We provide ongoing support and training to successfully assist the health professional to make the transition to remote practice.

If you are ready to be part of the effort to close the gap in Indigenous health outcomes across the Northern Territory, we stand ready to support you.

Testimonials

I have had the pleasure of being a Remote Educator (RE) with RAHC for the past four years. I am passionate about sharing my 11 years of experience in every aspect of living and working within remote Aboriginal Communities.

I believe RAHC supports their clinicians to the highest level. Through REs and their free comprehensive education modules, RAHC RNs are well prepared for all aspects of Remote Nursing.

Deborah O’Neill
Remote Educator

As of 2021, I have completed 27 placements as a Remote Educator with RAHC.

This support and mentorship role is invaluable to those on their first placement. It enables NTRs to quickly become fully functioning members of the remote clinic team, a benefit for both the NTR and the health service.

Margaret Cooper
Remote Educator

I think [the confidence I gained] was the main benefit of the Remote Educator for me. I am new to Primary Health and to remote nursing, and I found that to have an RE with me for the first week gave me an enormous amount of confidence to continue to pursue my remote nursing career. Bec was a terrific resource in this respect.

Margaret Harper
New-to-remote

[It] was great to be able to talk [with a Remote Educator] beforehand and get some ideas about community
[I] Definitely [recommend the support of a Remote Educator to other new-to-remotes]! I feel lucky to have had [my RE] with me. It would have been very hard to work out PCIS by myself, and it was also great to have her to ease into being on call.”

Monika Geisselbrecht
New-to-remote

[The time spent with my Remote Educator was] extremely [important], it is a fast track into new remote area nursing work. Plus, it supports the facility with another experienced clinician to help orientate a new person without taking away from their time in a busy clinic, meaning greater efficiency and increased productivity.

[I] Totally [recommend the support of a Remote Educator to other new-to-remotes]! One of the reasons I chose RAHC to go remote with is the support from a Remote Educator. It is great to have that person by your side to learn as it happens.”

Amanda Burns
New-to-remote