Dr Kyle Eggleton was woken at 3am one morning this week by a family with a medical emergency. Such is the life of a rural general practitioner.
The emergency was resolved, but Eggleton, a part-time GP in Hokianga, said that is an example of the peculiarities of working as a health professional in a rural communities.
Eggleton, who is also an associate dean (rural) at Auckland University, said health education is urban focused and to promote careers in rural communities requires exposing students to life and work.
He was one of two people to have their longstanding service and dedication to rural health recognised with Peter Snow Memorial Awards at the recent National Rural Health Conference.
The other was Rhoena Davis.
Dr Peter Snow is considered a revered figure in rural health and the award has been presented in his name since 2007, according to a statement from the Rural Health Network.
Eggleton said one factor to attract rural health professionals is to lure students into training who have rural backgrounds.
Over half the current rural health workforce has a rural background, but their path through the tertiary training tends to be more challenging as rural students tend to endure more debt than those from urban areas.
His clinical practice influenced his academic roles as a teacher for medical and health students, as a researcher leading medical education and rural health projects, and as a leader, the latter culminating in his appointment at Auckland University.
Through this role, he helped establish a rural stream for medical students and implement admission schemes to professional health programmes for rural-origin students.
A successful tactic is to expose medical students to life in rural communities by staying on a farm, spend time embedded in a rural community or a weekend on a rural marae.
In addition to his medical degree, Kyle holds Master’s degrees in medical science and public health, and a PhD, which explored the concept of measuring the quality of Māori health providers using a kaupapa Māori-aligned methodology.
Davis has been honoured for her service to Māori health, rural healthcare delivery and nursing leadership.
As a Māori board member of the College of Nurses Aotearoa and a member of the New Zealand Nursing Council Komiti Māori, Davis has played a pivotal role in shaping nursing leadership and advocating for Māori health at local, regional and national levels.
At the forefront of her leadership is Aronuku, the Māori caucus of the College of Nurses Aotearoa, which Rhoena chairs.
She has led initiatives to develop cultural safety competencies, advocated for funding and policy changes to support nurse practitioners, and worked to address inequities in healthcare delivery, particularly in rural and remote areas.
Davis is involved in the National Nurse Leaders Group, Ora Taiao, the Federation of Primary Health Care and is the deputy chair of Hauora Taiwhenua board.
