Hidden Capacity? Uncovering the Rural Australian Health Research Workforce Using National Census Data

IF 2.4 4区医学 Q2 NURSING

Australian Journal of Rural Health Pub Date : 2026-07-18 DOI:10.1111/ajr.70234

Michelle Kersten, Karen Hayes, Susan Heaney

{"title":"Hidden Capacity? Uncovering the Rural Australian Health Research Workforce Using National Census Data","authors":"Michelle Kersten, Karen Hayes, Susan Heaney","doi":"10.1111/ajr.70234","DOIUrl":null,"url":null,"abstract":"<div>\n \n \n <section>\n \n <h3> Objective</h3>\n \n <p>To provide the first national analysis of the distribution and professional composition of PhD-qualified health professionals across metropolitan, regional, rural and remote Australia.</p>\n </section>\n \n <section>\n \n <h3> Design</h3>\n \n <p>Cross-sectional analysis of 2021 Australian Census data.</p>\n </section>\n \n <section>\n \n <h3> Setting</h3>\n \n <p>Australia, classified by Modified Monash Model (MM) remoteness categories.</p>\n </section>\n \n <section>\n \n <h3> Participants</h3>\n \n <p>Health professionals reporting a doctoral-level qualification (PhD).</p>\n </section>\n \n <section>\n \n <h3> Main Outcome Measures</h3>\n \n <p>Counts and proportions of PhD-qualified health professionals by MM category and occupation group; association between remoteness and PhD representation.</p>\n </section>\n \n <section>\n \n <h3> Methods</h3>\n \n <p>Occupations were grouped into medicine, allied health, and nursing. Residential locations were mapped to MM categories. Descriptive statistics and linear regression examined distribution patterns.</p>\n </section>\n \n <section>\n \n <h3> Results</h3>\n \n <p>Of 21 510 PhD-qualified health professionals, 85% lived in metropolitan areas (MM1), with 3027 (14%) in regional, rural and remote communities and only 12 (< 1%) in very remote areas (MM7). Medical practitioners comprised 61%, allied health 36% (predominantly psychology) and nursing 3%. Increasing remoteness was associated with reduced PhD representation (<i>β</i> = −0.0041, <i>p</i> = 0.011).</p>\n </section>\n \n <section>\n \n <h3> Conclusions</h3>\n \n <p>Research capacity is concentrated in metropolitan areas, yet a substantial base of PhD-qualified professionals exists in RRR communities. Targeted investment in funding, infrastructure and support could leverage this workforce to build sustainable rural health research capacity.</p>\n </section>\n </div>","PeriodicalId":55421,"journal":{"name":"Australian Journal of Rural Health","volume":"34 4","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":2.4000,"publicationDate":"2026-07-18","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1111/ajr.70234","citationCount":"0","resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":null,"PeriodicalName":"Australian Journal of Rural Health","FirstCategoryId":"3","ListUrlMain":"https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/ajr.70234","RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":null,"EPubDate":"","PubModel":"","JCR":"Q2","JCRName":"NURSING","Score":null,"Total":0}

引用次数: 0

Abstract

Objective

To provide the first national analysis of the distribution and professional composition of PhD-qualified health professionals across metropolitan, regional, rural and remote Australia.

Design

Cross-sectional analysis of 2021 Australian Census data.

Setting

Australia, classified by Modified Monash Model (MM) remoteness categories.

Participants

Health professionals reporting a doctoral-level qualification (PhD).

Main Outcome Measures

Counts and proportions of PhD-qualified health professionals by MM category and occupation group; association between remoteness and PhD representation.

Methods

Occupations were grouped into medicine, allied health, and nursing. Residential locations were mapped to MM categories. Descriptive statistics and linear regression examined distribution patterns.

Results

Of 21 510 PhD-qualified health professionals, 85% lived in metropolitan areas (MM1), with 3027 (14%) in regional, rural and remote communities and only 12 (< 1%) in very remote areas (MM7). Medical practitioners comprised 61%, allied health 36% (predominantly psychology) and nursing 3%. Increasing remoteness was associated with reduced PhD representation (β = −0.0041, p = 0.011).

Conclusions

Research capacity is concentrated in metropolitan areas, yet a substantial base of PhD-qualified professionals exists in RRR communities. Targeted investment in funding, infrastructure and support could leverage this workforce to build sustainable rural health research capacity.

查看原文本刊更多论文

隐藏的能力?利用全国人口普查数据揭示澳大利亚农村卫生研究人员队伍

目的首次对澳大利亚大都市、地区、农村和偏远地区具有博士资格的卫生专业人员的分布和专业组成进行全国性分析。设计2021年澳大利亚人口普查数据的横断面分析。设置澳大利亚，按修改莫纳什模型（MM）远程分类。参与者报告博士级资格（PhD）的卫生专业人员。按MM类别和职业组划分的具有博士资格的卫生专业人员的数量和比例；远程和博士表示之间的联系。方法将职业分为医学、专职卫生和护理。居住地点被映射到MM类别。描述性统计和线性回归检验了分布模式。结果21 510名具有博士学位的卫生专业人员中，85%生活在大都市地区（MM1）， 3027人（14%）生活在区域、农村和偏远社区，只有12人（1%）生活在极偏远地区（MM7）。医疗从业人员占61%，联合保健36%（主要是心理学），护理3%。距离越远，博士代表率越低（β = - 0.0041, p = 0.011）。结论研究能力主要集中在大都市地区，但研究人员社区存在大量具有博士资格的专业人才。在资金、基础设施和支持方面进行有针对性的投资，可以利用这一劳动力来建设可持续的农村卫生研究能力。

本文章由计算机程序翻译，如有差异，请以英文原文为准。

求助全文

约1分钟内获得全文求助全文

来源期刊

Australian Journal of Rural Health 医学-公共卫生、环境卫生与职业卫生

CiteScore

2.30

自引率

16.70%

发文量

122

审稿时长

12 months

期刊介绍： The Australian Journal of Rural Health publishes articles in the field of rural health. It facilitates the formation of interdisciplinary networks, so that rural health professionals can form a cohesive group and work together for the advancement of rural practice, in all health disciplines. The Journal aims to establish a national and international reputation for the quality of its scholarly discourse and its value to rural health professionals. All articles, unless otherwise identified, are peer reviewed by at least two researchers expert in the field of the submitted paper.