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When Dr Prashan Kuruppu first arrived at South Australia’s Port Lincoln Aboriginal Health Service as an ACRRM registrar, he hoped he was there to learn rural and remote medicine.
Instead, he found himself helping children prepare healthy meals, supporting local football programs and discovering a model of care that extended far beyond the clinic walls.
“It wasn’t just medicine,” he says.
“You became part of the community.”
As Australia marks National Reconciliation Week 2026, Dr Kuruppu’s story reflects this year’s theme, All in — recognising that reconciliation is something all Australians have a role in, through listening, learning, building relationships and taking meaningful action alongside Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples.
For the ACRRM Rural Generalist, working within Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander health has become one of the most rewarding aspects of his career.
“It’s not like going to work,” he says.
“Everybody actually works together in the Aboriginal Health Service. You’re almost like mates.”
Dr Kuruppu’s journey into Aboriginal health took off when he applied for an opportunity at the Port Lincoln Aboriginal Health Service (PLAHS).
He arrived expecting to strengthen his rural medicine skills but quickly discovered something much broader.
“It was a lot more than mainstream general practice,” he says.
“It was holistic care in the purest sense.”
At PLAHS, healthcare extended beyond the consulting room into schools, homes and the wider community.
Dr Kuruppu became involved in programs helping children and families build healthier lifestyles, including initiatives where children learned to shop for healthy food before preparing meals together at the clinic.
Another program encouraged school attendance through football and community engagement, inspired by local AFL star Eddie Betts, while other initiatives supported children to improve fitness and wellbeing through gym programs and mentoring.
He immersed himself in the community, becoming involved with the local Mallee Park Football Club as the team doctor and building relationships with players and families.
“So that was where it all started in terms of loving Aboriginal health,” he says.
That experience sparked a long-term commitment to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander health that eventually led him to Moorundi Aboriginal Community Controlled Health Service in Murray Bridge, where he now supports a model of integrated care for local First Nations people.
Moorundi ACCHO was established in 2016, following more than a decade of advocacy and planning by the Ngarrindjeri community. The service recently opened its new purpose-built health centre.
Today, it provides primary healthcare, outreach clinics, school screenings and immunisation programs, with plans to further expand specialist services.
Dr Kuruppu says one of the most rewarding aspects of working at Moorundi is the collaborative environment.
He works closely alongside Aboriginal Health Workers, remote area nurses, allied health professionals and other clinicians, helping support outreach programs and mentoring emerging practitioners. He engages with remote communities such as Raukkan to assist with school screening and immunisation clinics.
Importantly, he says the work is driven by service — not targets.
“In mainstream general practice, there can be a focus on turnover and billing,” he says.
“Here, you’re doing a service. You focus on getting the job done and helping the community.”
That philosophy aligns closely with his role as an ACRRM Rural Generalist.
“Rural Generalists are uniquely placed to support Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities through both procedural and community-focused medicine,” he says.
Along the way, Dr Kuruppu has also embraced opportunities for cultural learning, including participating in Camp Coorong in South Australia, where participants learned directly from community members about traditional medicinal plants, weaving, and cultural practices.
“It wasn’t just cultural awareness training in a classroom,” he says.
“You lived it.”
As Australia marks National Reconciliation Week, Dr Kuruppu hopes more doctors will consider working in Aboriginal Community Controlled Health Services.
“It’s an experience,” he says.
“Unless you’ve lived it, you can’t fully understand it.”
Asked whether it takes a special kind of doctor to work in Aboriginal health, his answer is immediate.
“It takes a Rural Generalist.”
Instead, he found himself helping children prepare healthy meals, supporting local football programs and discovering a model of care that extended far beyond the clinic walls.
“It wasn’t just medicine,” he says.
“You became part of the community.”
As Australia marks National Reconciliation Week 2026, Dr Kuruppu’s story reflects this year’s theme, All in — recognising that reconciliation is something all Australians have a role in, through listening, learning, building relationships and taking meaningful action alongside Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples.
For the ACRRM Rural Generalist, working within Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander health has become one of the most rewarding aspects of his career.
“It’s not like going to work,” he says.
“Everybody actually works together in the Aboriginal Health Service. You’re almost like mates.”
Dr Kuruppu’s journey into Aboriginal health took off when he applied for an opportunity at the Port Lincoln Aboriginal Health Service (PLAHS).
He arrived expecting to strengthen his rural medicine skills but quickly discovered something much broader.
“It was a lot more than mainstream general practice,” he says.
“It was holistic care in the purest sense.”
At PLAHS, healthcare extended beyond the consulting room into schools, homes and the wider community.
Dr Kuruppu became involved in programs helping children and families build healthier lifestyles, including initiatives where children learned to shop for healthy food before preparing meals together at the clinic.
Another program encouraged school attendance through football and community engagement, inspired by local AFL star Eddie Betts, while other initiatives supported children to improve fitness and wellbeing through gym programs and mentoring.
He immersed himself in the community, becoming involved with the local Mallee Park Football Club as the team doctor and building relationships with players and families.
“So that was where it all started in terms of loving Aboriginal health,” he says.
That experience sparked a long-term commitment to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander health that eventually led him to Moorundi Aboriginal Community Controlled Health Service in Murray Bridge, where he now supports a model of integrated care for local First Nations people.
Moorundi ACCHO was established in 2016, following more than a decade of advocacy and planning by the Ngarrindjeri community. The service recently opened its new purpose-built health centre.
Today, it provides primary healthcare, outreach clinics, school screenings and immunisation programs, with plans to further expand specialist services.
Dr Kuruppu says one of the most rewarding aspects of working at Moorundi is the collaborative environment.
He works closely alongside Aboriginal Health Workers, remote area nurses, allied health professionals and other clinicians, helping support outreach programs and mentoring emerging practitioners. He engages with remote communities such as Raukkan to assist with school screening and immunisation clinics.
Importantly, he says the work is driven by service — not targets.
“In mainstream general practice, there can be a focus on turnover and billing,” he says.
“Here, you’re doing a service. You focus on getting the job done and helping the community.”
That philosophy aligns closely with his role as an ACRRM Rural Generalist.
“Rural Generalists are uniquely placed to support Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities through both procedural and community-focused medicine,” he says.
Along the way, Dr Kuruppu has also embraced opportunities for cultural learning, including participating in Camp Coorong in South Australia, where participants learned directly from community members about traditional medicinal plants, weaving, and cultural practices.
“It wasn’t just cultural awareness training in a classroom,” he says.
“You lived it.”
As Australia marks National Reconciliation Week, Dr Kuruppu hopes more doctors will consider working in Aboriginal Community Controlled Health Services.
“It’s an experience,” he says.
“Unless you’ve lived it, you can’t fully understand it.”
Asked whether it takes a special kind of doctor to work in Aboriginal health, his answer is immediate.
“It takes a Rural Generalist.”
All news
When Dr Prashan Kuruppu first arrived at South Australia’s Port Lincoln Aboriginal Health Service as an ACRRM registrar, he hoped he was there to learn rural and remote medicine.
Instead, he found himself helping children prepare healthy meals, supporting local football programs and discovering a model of care that extended far beyond the clinic walls.
“It wasn’t just medicine,” he says.
“You became part of the community.”
As Australia marks National Reconciliation Week 2026, Dr Kuruppu’s story reflects this year’s theme, All in — recognising that reconciliation is something all Australians have a role in, through listening, learning, building relationships and taking meaningful action alongside Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples.
For the ACRRM Rural Generalist, working within Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander health has become one of the most rewarding aspects of his career.
“It’s not like going to work,” he says.
“Everybody actually works together in the Aboriginal Health Service. You’re almost like mates.”
Dr Kuruppu’s journey into Aboriginal health took off when he applied for an opportunity at the Port Lincoln Aboriginal Health Service (PLAHS).
He arrived expecting to strengthen his rural medicine skills but quickly discovered something much broader.
“It was a lot more than mainstream general practice,” he says.
“It was holistic care in the purest sense.”
At PLAHS, healthcare extended beyond the consulting room into schools, homes and the wider community.
Dr Kuruppu became involved in programs helping children and families build healthier lifestyles, including initiatives where children learned to shop for healthy food before preparing meals together at the clinic.
Another program encouraged school attendance through football and community engagement, inspired by local AFL star Eddie Betts, while other initiatives supported children to improve fitness and wellbeing through gym programs and mentoring.
He immersed himself in the community, becoming involved with the local Mallee Park Football Club as the team doctor and building relationships with players and families.
“So that was where it all started in terms of loving Aboriginal health,” he says.
That experience sparked a long-term commitment to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander health that eventually led him to Moorundi Aboriginal Community Controlled Health Service in Murray Bridge, where he now supports a model of integrated care for local First Nations people.
Moorundi ACCHO was established in 2016, following more than a decade of advocacy and planning by the Ngarrindjeri community. The service recently opened its new purpose-built health centre.
Today, it provides primary healthcare, outreach clinics, school screenings and immunisation programs, with plans to further expand specialist services.
Dr Kuruppu says one of the most rewarding aspects of working at Moorundi is the collaborative environment.
He works closely alongside Aboriginal Health Workers, remote area nurses, allied health professionals and other clinicians, helping support outreach programs and mentoring emerging practitioners. He engages with remote communities such as Raukkan to assist with school screening and immunisation clinics.
Importantly, he says the work is driven by service — not targets.
“In mainstream general practice, there can be a focus on turnover and billing,” he says.
“Here, you’re doing a service. You focus on getting the job done and helping the community.”
That philosophy aligns closely with his role as an ACRRM Rural Generalist.
“Rural Generalists are uniquely placed to support Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities through both procedural and community-focused medicine,” he says.
Along the way, Dr Kuruppu has also embraced opportunities for cultural learning, including participating in Camp Coorong in South Australia, where participants learned directly from community members about traditional medicinal plants, weaving, and cultural practices.
“It wasn’t just cultural awareness training in a classroom,” he says.
“You lived it.”
As Australia marks National Reconciliation Week, Dr Kuruppu hopes more doctors will consider working in Aboriginal Community Controlled Health Services.
“It’s an experience,” he says.
“Unless you’ve lived it, you can’t fully understand it.”
Asked whether it takes a special kind of doctor to work in Aboriginal health, his answer is immediate.
“It takes a Rural Generalist.”
Instead, he found himself helping children prepare healthy meals, supporting local football programs and discovering a model of care that extended far beyond the clinic walls.
“It wasn’t just medicine,” he says.
“You became part of the community.”
As Australia marks National Reconciliation Week 2026, Dr Kuruppu’s story reflects this year’s theme, All in — recognising that reconciliation is something all Australians have a role in, through listening, learning, building relationships and taking meaningful action alongside Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples.
For the ACRRM Rural Generalist, working within Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander health has become one of the most rewarding aspects of his career.
“It’s not like going to work,” he says.
“Everybody actually works together in the Aboriginal Health Service. You’re almost like mates.”
Dr Kuruppu’s journey into Aboriginal health took off when he applied for an opportunity at the Port Lincoln Aboriginal Health Service (PLAHS).
He arrived expecting to strengthen his rural medicine skills but quickly discovered something much broader.
“It was a lot more than mainstream general practice,” he says.
“It was holistic care in the purest sense.”
At PLAHS, healthcare extended beyond the consulting room into schools, homes and the wider community.
Dr Kuruppu became involved in programs helping children and families build healthier lifestyles, including initiatives where children learned to shop for healthy food before preparing meals together at the clinic.
Another program encouraged school attendance through football and community engagement, inspired by local AFL star Eddie Betts, while other initiatives supported children to improve fitness and wellbeing through gym programs and mentoring.
He immersed himself in the community, becoming involved with the local Mallee Park Football Club as the team doctor and building relationships with players and families.
“So that was where it all started in terms of loving Aboriginal health,” he says.
That experience sparked a long-term commitment to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander health that eventually led him to Moorundi Aboriginal Community Controlled Health Service in Murray Bridge, where he now supports a model of integrated care for local First Nations people.
Moorundi ACCHO was established in 2016, following more than a decade of advocacy and planning by the Ngarrindjeri community. The service recently opened its new purpose-built health centre.
Today, it provides primary healthcare, outreach clinics, school screenings and immunisation programs, with plans to further expand specialist services.
Dr Kuruppu says one of the most rewarding aspects of working at Moorundi is the collaborative environment.
He works closely alongside Aboriginal Health Workers, remote area nurses, allied health professionals and other clinicians, helping support outreach programs and mentoring emerging practitioners. He engages with remote communities such as Raukkan to assist with school screening and immunisation clinics.
Importantly, he says the work is driven by service — not targets.
“In mainstream general practice, there can be a focus on turnover and billing,” he says.
“Here, you’re doing a service. You focus on getting the job done and helping the community.”
That philosophy aligns closely with his role as an ACRRM Rural Generalist.
“Rural Generalists are uniquely placed to support Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities through both procedural and community-focused medicine,” he says.
Along the way, Dr Kuruppu has also embraced opportunities for cultural learning, including participating in Camp Coorong in South Australia, where participants learned directly from community members about traditional medicinal plants, weaving, and cultural practices.
“It wasn’t just cultural awareness training in a classroom,” he says.
“You lived it.”
As Australia marks National Reconciliation Week, Dr Kuruppu hopes more doctors will consider working in Aboriginal Community Controlled Health Services.
“It’s an experience,” he says.
“Unless you’ve lived it, you can’t fully understand it.”
Asked whether it takes a special kind of doctor to work in Aboriginal health, his answer is immediate.
“It takes a Rural Generalist.”