The 11th meeting of the Regional Health Ministerial Advisory Panel (RHMAP) was held at the Ministry of Health, Cammeraygal Country on 18 February 2026. The meeting was chaired by Dr Richard Colbran, Chief Executive Officer of Rural Doctors Network and attended by the Minister for Health and Regional Health, the Hon. Ryan Park MP.
Uncle Allen Murray from the Metropolitan Aboriginal Lands Council commenced the meeting with a Welcome to Country and Margaret Bennett, Chief Executive, Southern NSW Local Health District, and Chair of the Regional Health Committee, was welcomed as a new ex officio member.
Regional Workforce was the focus for the meeting, aligning with Priority 1 of the NSW Regional Health Strategic Plan 2022-2032 aimed at strengthening career pathways to train and retain staff locally, attracting and keeping health care workers and ensuring safe, culturally respectful workplaces. Members were briefed on key regional workforce initiatives, including the Rural Health Workforce Incentive Scheme, NSW Health Deployment Program, agency workforce reform, and the Paramedic Pilot to address staff shortages, attraction and retention across rural and regional NSW. The presentation highlighted the need to strengthen health career and training pathways, support the development of generalist skill sets, reduce reliance on agency staff and build multidisciplinary capability across regional areas.
An update on the achievements from the Regional Health Strategic Plan 2022 – 2032 was provided to members, noting its development was a recommendation from the Rural Health Inquiry and involved extensive sector consultation.
The Plan's delivery roadmaps, evaluation across the 3, 5 and 10 year time horizons, and the significant progress achieved in the first three years to 30 June 2025 were highlighted. An evaluation of the first 3 years of the Plan is currently underway. During the meeting, members also participated in a consultation session for the evaluation led by Macquarie University. The Panel also noted that implementation of the Plan is a Future Health Strategic Priority for the NSW Health Secretary.
An update on the Isolated Patients Travel and Accommodation Assistance Scheme (IPTAAS) was provided to members. The Panel noted improvements to the scheme were a recommendation from the Rural Health Inquiry and contribute to the strategic priorities within the Regional Health Strategic Plan. Work to streamline processing and expand support options such as advance payments was acknowledged by the Panel. Also highlighted was progress of the IPTAAS Aboriginal Community Controlled Health Organisation (ACCHO) Pilot, a two‑year program delivered with ACCHOs to enhance culturally safe access, streamline processes and increase uptake of IPTAAS by Aboriginal people.
During the Minister's session, the Panel reflected on a range of issues affecting regional communities, including drug and alcohol and mental health workforce pressures, service coordination between agencies and providers, the role of virtual care, digital system improvements and the importance of consistent cross‑border processes such as electronic prescribing.
The next RHMAP meeting will be held virtually on 20 May 2026.