Mount Isa’s Dr Brianna Smith has been selected from a strong pool of applicants to attend the Australian College of Rural and Remote Medicine (ACRRM) Emerging Leaders Conference on Wadjemup (Rottnest Island), WA, this October.
Dr Smith is a Senior Medical Officer at Mount Isa Hospital, a Medical Officer with the Royal Flying Doctor Service, and this year took on the role of Director of Rural Generalist Training for the North West Hospital and Health Service. She has quickly become a key leader for both patients and colleagues across the region.
Originally arriving in Mount Isa in 2021 as a registrar for “just one year,” Dr Smith has stayed on because she wanted to be part of the solution to the challenges facing North West Queensland communities.
She works across hospital, primary care, and aeromedical retrievals, helping to improve systems, strengthen First Nations healthcare, and support doctors in training.
“My motivation has always been to improve health equity here in the North West,” Dr Smith says.
“That means training the next generation, supporting junior doctors, and making sure our health system is safe, sustainable and responsive to the needs of our community.”
Dr Smith says she is looking forward to the chance to build her leadership skills, share ideas with peers from across Australia, and bring back new approaches to help keep doctors working and living in the bush.
The Emerging Leaders Conference runs from 19 to 21 October and is immediately followed by the Rural Medicine Australia 2025 conference hosted by ACRRM and The Rural Doctors Association of Australia in Boorloo (Perth), from 22 to 25 October.