Why we do it

We believe that Universal Health Coverage is a fundamental human right. 

In Australia, the quality of your health and the length of your life depends largely on where you live.  If you live in a rural and remote community you are more likely to have poorer health and could die up to 11 years earlier compared to people who live in the city.  A significant contributor to health inequality in Australia is lack of access to local GP and primary health services in remote and Indigenous communities.

Two out of every three Australians believe that rural and remote people get a 'raw deal'.

Australians generally believe that rural and remote people get a 'raw deal'.  According to the ABC Australia Talks Survey, 2 in 3 Australians believe that rural people are treated unfairly. While this view is most strongly held among rural Australians (80 percent), it is also supported by a majority of metropolitan Australians ( 57 percent of Inner Metropolitan Australians and 60 percent of Outer Metropolitan Australians).

We believe that the key to addressing health inequality in Australia is ensuring that all Australians, regardless of where they live, have access to a local GP and primary care service including mothers and babies, young adults, farmers, the elderly, Indigenous Australians and people with chronic diseases and disabilities.

At RARMS we do not believe that health inequality is a fact of life, and working together we have proven that we can get doctors and nurses to work in rural and remote communities with the right programs and support.   That is why we work tirelessly every day to help communities take control of their own destinies by helping them to retain and build sustainable their own local GP-led health services.