In this expansive episode registered nurse, John Wright, reflects on the career he has built as a remote area nurse and clinical educator currently serving some of Australia’s most remote communities. John is a proud emissary for a career that he has found to be rewarding, challenging and rich.

Sitting down with our host, Claire Delahunty, John shares the winding path he walked on his way to join the ranks of a profession of which men make up just over ten percent. His love of ‘bush’ communities has remained a constant throughout his life, as has his gravitation to work where his skills are most needed.

John is frank about the legacy of family violence in his childhood and the way it impacted his ability to deal with conflict as an adult. In the management roles he has taken on throughout his career, John has worked determinedly to develop healthy communication skills and tools to have difficult conversations. Learning is another constant throughout John’s story, as at every turn he has invested in further study to enable him to give his best to every role. He talks about the impostor syndrome and the leadership development opportunity that helped him to truly embrace ‘being a leader’.

John is currently a Nurse Education and Research Coordinator with the Tennant Creek Hospital’s Clinical Improvement Unit, and he has a part time secondment with Flinders University as a teaching academic. He completed Course 16 of the Australian Rural Leadership Program in 2010 thanks to a scholarship from the-then Department of Health and Ageing.

Some highlights:

• The rewards for men of a career in nursing

• Why early career health workers should give remote communities a go

• How to beat imposter syndrome and reject self-imposed limits

• How practical steps and peer support helped John un-learn a fear of conflict

• Insights into the long-term impact of the global pandemic on the health workforce

• Relationships and trust: the keys to being a health practitioner in rural communities

• How feeling valued, heard, and respected helps health workers to stay in the bush

Our host:

Claire Delahunty, is a writer and journalist who has worked with the ARLF for more than ten years, interviewing leaders having a positive impact on rural and regional Australia.

Resources:

ARLF podcast blog

ARLF website

Australian Rural Leadership Program

Department of Health and Aged Care

CRANAplus

This episode discusses domestic and family violence. If you need support, reach out:

Lifeline | call 13 11 14 | text 0477 13 11 14

Kids Helpline | 1800 551 800

1800 RESPECT | 1800 737 732

Kids Helpline | 1800 551 800

MensLine Australia | 1300 789 978

Safe and Equal