The biennial event has brought 1100 delegates together from rural and remote Australia.

From April 26 - 29 more than 20 keynote speakers will discuss their views on rural and remote health.

North West Hospital and Health Chief Executive Lisa Davies Jones said she felt very lucky to be at the conference.

“It’s a fantastic event with some truly inspiring speakers,” Ms Davies-Jones said.

“The strong messages coming out of today are the importance of strong collaboration between all involved in providing health services, and the essential need for community engagement in designing care that meets the unique needs of our different communities.”

The national conference is live streaming on YouTube from Cairns Convention Centre.

So far there has been strong focus on improving Indigenous health outcomes, said Ms Davies-Jones.

“There is a lot of evidence being shared of the importance of improving social determinants of health as well as improving access to health services to really make a difference in Closing the Gap in Aboriginal health,”  Ms Davies-Jones said.

Also attending from Queensland were Jane Williams, Board Chair, South West HHS and Professor Sabina Knight, Director of Mount Isa Centre for Rural and Remote Health.

Speakers will deliver 49 sessions in total with presentations of contemporary reports on health status in rural areas. 

All plenary sessions are available to watch on the National Rural Health YouTube channel.