Dr Emily Walpole has been selected from a highly competitive field of applicants to attend the 2025 Australian College of Rural and Remote Medicine (ACRRM) Emerging Leaders Conference.
Recently starting as a Senior Medical Officer in Gin Gin, Dr Walpole’s leadership has always been grounded in her close connection to rural and remote communities.
She spent more than two years living and working on Palm Island, including through the pandemic lockdown, and has continued to advocate for sustainable, community-led healthcare in North and South East Queensland.
Her leadership roles include serving as Acting Medical Superintendent on Palm Island, mentoring ACRRM registrars, supervising doctors-in-training within Townsville clinics, and guiding registrars in their own leadership development.
She sees her work as a social justice advocate, helping to reduce the health inequities faced by people in rural and remote areas.
“I’ve seen first-hand the challenges that distance and isolation create for patients and for the doctors who serve them,” Dr Walpole says.
“My goal is to help bridge the gap, by building stronger services in community and ensuring all clinicians understand the realities remote patients live with.”
Through her work, Dr Walpole has become a trusted advocate for remote patients, working alongside community to ensure their voices are heard in broader healthcare decision-making.
At the Emerging Leaders Conference, she hopes to deepen her leadership skills, share her experiences, and collaborate on innovative ways to deliver healthcare in rural and remote regions. “This is an opportunity to connect with others who are passionate about rural medicine and to explore new models of care that can reduce burnout while improving outcomes for the communities we serve.”
The Emerging Leaders Conference will be followed by Australia’s largest Rural Medicine Australia (RMA25) conference, hosted by ACRRM and the Rural Doctors Association of Australia in Perth.