2025 Excellence in Rural and Remote Nursing

Robyn Rayner

Dr Robyn Rayner is the lead clinician in the Bunbury Wound Clinic and acknowledged as a clinical leader by her peers in the wound management domain and for her rigorous research into skin care prediction, risk and prevention. Her significant research resulted in validation of the STAR Skin Tear Classification and an external validation of a predictive model for aged-related skin tears in Fitzpatrick skin types I – IV cohort.

Robyn is a strong advocate for rural health and despite having international impact in her research, she retains a hands-on approach to direct clinical care of rural people with wounds. Her practice is always directed at making a difference in outcomes for rural clients and professional advancement of nursing through her translation of research and modelling of evidence informed care.

Robyn was seconded part time to the WoundsWest Project (a partnership with WA Health, Curtin University and SilverChain) as the Education Officer 2007-2013. This project resulted in statewide wound surveys in 2007, 2008, 2009 and 2011, online wound management education modules and telehealth consultation for health professionals, clients and carers. The WoundsWest Project reduced WA Health hospital wound prevalence from 49% to 42% and iatrogenic wounds by 33%. Robyn played a vital role in the delivery of the education program and surveys.

Her professional contributions extend to her research, publications and conference presentations. She has 23 peer reviewed publications in prestigious journals and sits on the Editorial Board of the Journal of Wound Practice and Research and is a reviewer for the British Journal of Wound Care and the International Wound Journal and the Curtin WHAM Collaboration. The evidence summaries produced by the latter guide clinical practice nationally and internationally and are especially important for nurses in low resource countries.

Robyn received literary awards for her publications in 2019 and 2022 and she is frequently cited in the literature, demonstrating a far-reaching impact. 

Denise Hughes

Denise is a Clinical Nurse Manager of a busy inpatient ward in a rural setting who exemplifies exceptional leadership qualities and attributes. She consistently encourages and supports her colleagues, acting as a role model to inspire the best possible practice. Her leadership is characterised by a deep commitment to teamwork and compassion, often going beyond her duties to initiate acts of kindness and support for her team. She fosters a positive, productive, and compassionate workplace culture, ensuring that every team member feels valued and motivated.

Denise excels in building and maintaining collaborative relationships within her area of practice. She has developed strong partnerships with various stakeholders, leveraging these relationships to achieve the best outcomes for her patients and community. Her approach is centred on putting the patient and community at the heart of everything she does. By engaging with her team and other healthcare professionals, she ensures that everyone works together towards common goals. Her ability to engage and leverage the strengths of others enables the team to deliver high-quality, person-centred care.

She consistently goes above and beyond, displaying a remarkable work ethic and a commitment to service above self. Her quality of practice is exceptional, and she stands out from her colleagues through her innovative approaches and compassionate care. She is actively involved in several quality improvement activities, always striving to enhance patient safety and satisfaction.

Denise is a strong advocate for her team and patients at every opportunity, whether it’s securing additional resources, implementing new policies to improve working conditions, or ensuring that patient care standards are upheld. Her leadership is driven by a genuine desire to make a positive impact on both her colleagues and the patients they serve.

Scott Stokes

Scott is the Rural and Remote Program Lead and Master Nurse Practitioner Program Coordinator for the National School of Nursing and Midwifery, University of Notre Dame Australia (0.6FTE). Since his appointment in 2024, he has been involved in initiatives to grow our program in the region demonstrating his leadership and inspiring staff. His dedication in fostering a collaborative and encouraging environment has made positive impact on the team.  His collaborative approach is evident in the way he engaged with fellow academics, clinical partners, and students to enhance the learning experience and ensure the highest standards of nursing education. By actively contributing to curriculum development, sharing best practices, and supporting interdisciplinary teamwork, Scott has helped create a learning environment that is dynamic, inclusive, and student-centred.

In 2024, Scott developed a team of nursing academics for a grant application via the UNDA Strategic Fund to ‘nationalise’ our existing EN to BN program. This is a pivotal project to deliver the course in Broome that is of equal standard, quality, and opportunity to that of the metropolitan campuses.

Scott also works clinically in the West Australian (WA) Country Health Service at Broome Hospital (0.2FTE) providing leadership as a Neonatal Paediatric Nurse Practitioner (Acute Care) and participating in aeromedical retrieval work for newborns and children. He is the service Lead for

Paediatric Sepsis and the ESCALATION project (Recognising and Responding to Paediatric Clinical Deterioration in WA) and coordinates/teaches Advanced Paediatric Life Support and Neonatal Resuscitation program across the state.

Scott is remarkable leader whose natural leadership qualities include genuine compassion, an approachable nature, support for colleagues and, as a true role model, passionate commitment to his work’s purpose. Scott is dedicated to innovation and transformation of clinical practice. He is passionate about sharing knowledge and has actively contributed to research, publications, training and education, policy development, curriculum review and system governance.