Nominations for the Victorian Rural Health Awards CLOSE 4 May!
The Victorian Rural Health Awards are back for the 17th year, and it’s time to nominate and celebrate outstanding rural health professionals.
Since 2005, RWAV, with the support of the Victorian Department of Health, has proudly hosted the annual Victorian Rural Health Awards to recognize the outstanding contributions made by health professionals working in rural communities. The Awards honour the exceptional medical professionals, nurses, allied health professionals, Aboriginal health workers and practice managers working across rural Victoria.
Do you know an outstanding rural health professional who should be recognized for their contribution to your community?
Nominate them for one of the 10 Victorian Rural Health Awards categories, by providing their details in the form below.
General Eligibility Criteria
1. Candidates can be nominated by a peer, organization or patient.
2. The candidate must be currently practicing in a rural Victorian MMM* 2–7 location
3. Must have been working in a rural location for longer than two years.
* MMM refers to Monash Modified Model. The model was developed to better target health workforce programs to attract health professionals to more remote and smaller communities. The MMM classifies metropolitan, regional, rural and remote areas according to geographical remoteness, as defined by the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS), and town size. You can find your MMM location here.
The exception for nominations are ACCOs (Aboriginal Community Controlled Organizations), who can nominate in areas 1-7.
Selection Criteria for Nominations:
To Nominate a candidate for VRHA, please provide the following supporting information whilst filling out the nomination form below.
- Provide a summary of the nominee’s career in rural health
- Outline the outstanding contributions made by the nominee that demonstrate why they deserve consideration for this award
- Provide examples of the nominee’s contribution to the wellbeing of the community.
Nomination Categories for the 2022 Victorian Rural Health Awards:
The Outstanding Contribution by a Rural GP or Rural Generalist award recognises a rural doctor who has shown ongoing commitment to providing exceptional care to meet the current and future healthcare needs of their community.
Nominees for this award must be providing comprehensive general practice and emergency care, as well as required components of other medical specialist care in hospital and/or community settings to meet community needs. Eligible other care includes anaesthetics, obstetrics, emergency medicine, surgery, paediatrics, palliative care, internal medicine, and Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander health.
Eligibility criteria:
1. Peer, organisation or patient nominated
2. Must be currently practising in a rural Victorian MMM 2–7 location
3. Must have been working in a rural location for longer than two years.
The Outstanding Contribution by a Rural Medical Specialist award recognises a rural non-GP specialist who has shown ongoing commitment to providing exceptional care to the community.
Nominees for this award must be providing medical specialist care in a hospital and/or community setting.
Eligibility criteria:
1. Peer, organisation or patient nominated
2. Must be currently practising in a rural Victorian MMM 2–7 location
3. Must have been working in a rural location for longer than two years.
The Outstanding Contribution to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Health award recognises a health professional, team or organisation that has made significant contributions in providing care to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander clients and communities.
The award recognises both medical and non-medical workers and includes specialists, counsellors, health workers, nurses and many others.
Eligibility criteria:
1. Peer, organisation, patient or community member nominated
2. Must be currently practising in a rural Victorian MMM 2–7 location.
The Outstanding Contribution by a Rural Health Consumer Advocate award recognises the contribution of a consumer, carer or community member from rural Victoria that has made a significant contribution to healthcare. They need to demonstrate how they have used their lived experience to engage with health professionals or health services to improve the quality, accessibility or safety of healthcare. It also recognises an exceptional contribution by a consumer advocate to strengthen the consumer voice in decision making and program planning for the delivery of health services in rural Victoria.
Eligibility criteria:
1. Must have been involved in consumer advocacy activities relating to rural health in the last 12 months
2. Must be peer, organisation, patient or community member nominated.
The Outstanding Contribution by a Rural Health Team award recognises an exceptional team contribution to create a positive difference in the delivery of health care in rural Victoria.
Eligibility criteria:
1. Must be currently practising in a rural Victorian MMM 2–7 location
2. Must be a team contribution to general practice or allied health, providing excellence in service delivery and improved client outcomes
3.Peer, organisation, patient or community member nominated.
The Outstanding Contribution to Rural Primary Care Nursing award recognises an exceptional rural nurse or midwife who has delivered outstanding patient care, positive outcomes and who performs above the expectations of their role.
Eligibility criteria:
1. Peer, organisation or patient nominated
2. Must be currently practising in a rural Victorian MMM 2–7 location
3. Must have been working in a rural location for longer than two years.
The Outstanding Contribution to Rural Allied Health award recognises an allied health professional who has shown professional and personal commitment to regional and rural communities, and has gone above the expectations of their role to provide services to the community.
Eligibility criteria:
1. Peer, organisation or patient nominated
2. Must be currently practising in a rural Victorian MMM 2–7 location
3. Must have been working in a rural location for longer than two years.
The Outstanding Contribution by a Rural Healthcare Practice Management award recognises a practice manager who has gone above the expectations of their role shown professional and personal commitment to regional and rural communities through their leadership, mentoring and innovation.
Eligibility criteria:
1. Peer, organisation or community member nominated
2. Must be currently employed as a practice manager at a rural Victorian practice (MMM 2–7 location)
3. Must have been working in a rural location for longer than two years.
The Outstanding Contribution to Rural Healthcare Outreach Provision award recognises a health professional, team or organisation that has made significant contributions in providing outreach services to rural and regional communities.
The award recognises both medical and non-medical workers and includes specialists, counsellors, health workers, nurses and others.
Eligibility criteria:
1. Peer, organisation, patient or community member nominated
2. Must be currently practising in a rural Victorian MMM 2–7 location. If MMM1 location is identified, the service is delivered in an Aboriginal Medical Service or Aboriginal Community Controlled Health Organisation.
The Rising Star Award celebrates the future of rural health care. Each year we recognise a junior health professional who has shown a true passion for rural health and is intent on dedicating their career to rural communities.
Eligibility criteria:
1. Supervisor or organisation nominated
2. Open to all health professionals
3. Must be currently practising in a rural Victorian MMM 2–7 location;
4. Has been practising for less than four years.
