Rural Health: Problems, Prevention and Positive Outcomes

Lauren Rickards

“In Australia, nearly one third of our national population — approximately 7 million Australians — live in rural and remote areas. For all the complex reasons that health and place are associated, the health of this spatially, economically, socially and culturally distinct group is generally quantitatively and qualitatively different to — and often significantly poorer than — that of those living in major cities. While the benefits of this framing of rural as the conceptual Other to an urban norm is limited (as discussed below), it does highlight a serious social and equity issue, particularly when the influence or and differences between health care services in the two spaces is considered …”