Riverland Mallee Coorong Local Health Network

17/06/2026

It’s Men’s Health Week and we’re shining a spotlight on Prostate Cancer Specialist Nurse Debbie Vandemeulengraaf!

Debbie says Prostate Cancer Specialist Nurses provide support and expert advice to men and their families affected by prostate cancer.

“We can provide education, advice and support as needed, and also assist clients to access optimal care services as required,” she says.

“We offer support and care from diagnosis, as well as before, during and after treatments.”

Debbie says that offering hope and support to men and their families during such a challenging time is one of the most rewarding aspects of her role.

“I love to see great outcomes as men receive the care and treatments they require.”

If you have recently been diagnosed with prostate cancer, live in the Riverland Mallee Coorong region, and would like to access Debbie’s services you can:
☎️contact the Country Health Connect Murray Bridge office by phone on (08) 8535 6800
👩‍⚕️talk to your GP or specialist about a referral
🩵contact the Prostate Cancer Foundation of Australia on 1800 22 00 99, or visit prostate.org.au

ℹ️ For more information about prostate cancer, including when and how to get checked, visit prostate.org.au

15/06/2026

🗣️ Have your say on RMCLHN’s Strategic Plan 2027-2031!

The Riverland Mallee Coorong Local Health Network (RMCLHN) has developed a draft RMCLHN Strategic Plan 2027-2031.

This is our second Strategic Plan – with the inaugural Plan set to expire at the end of 2026.

The draft Plan is a concise, two-page document, which outlines our Closing the Gap commitment, Vision, Purpose, Values, Strategic Themes and Goals, and a process for implementation.

To have your say, download the draft Plan at www.sahealth.sa.gov.au/RMCYourVoiceMatters, then complete the short survey online at bit.ly/RMCLHNStrategicPlanConsultation. The survey is open now and closes on Friday 31 July 2026.

Hard copy versions of the draft Plan and the survey can be made available upon request.

Your feedback will be used to help us finalise the Strategic Plan prior to launch later this year.

Information about engaging with the Riverland Mallee Coorong Local Health Network.

13/06/2026

Thank you to everyone who stopped by for a chat with our team at the Jobs and Skills Showcase in Berri on Wednesday!

The event was very well-attended and provided a great opportunity for our team to connect and engage with Riverland students about career opportunities at the Riverland Mallee Coorong Local Health Network.

👉 Want to join our team? Visit bit.ly/OpportunitiesatRMCLHN to find out about the range of roles we have available across our region.

📸 Pictured: Support at Home Coordinator Brock Verrall, Assistant Human Resources Consultant Carina Turner and Business Support Team Leader Caitlin Thomson.

13/06/2026

Year 10 students can receive free meningococcal B and ACWY vaccines at school through the School Immunisation Program.

The A, C, W and Y strains are all included in one vaccine. The B strain needs two doses of the vaccine to provide full protection.

Meningococcal infection is a serious medical emergency as it can be life threatening. It can cause severe scarring, loss of limbs, brain damage and even death.

Students can receive the free meningococcal vaccines if a completed consent form is returned to the school and consent is provided. Look out for the School Immunisation Program consent form, sign it and return it.

To learn more visit brnw.ch/21x2Z1O

12/06/2026

Breakfast is served! 🍳

Renmark Paringa District Hospital fired up the BBQ this morning to celebrate their incredible team and thank them for their hard work and dedication to care for our consumers, residents and community.

We are so lucky to have you! ❤️

12/06/2026

People living with HIV can live long, healthy lives. ❤️

While there isn’t a vaccine or cure for HIV just yet, the good news is that there’s a highly effective treatment called antiretroviral therapy (ART).

When taken as recommended, ART helps stop HIV from harming the immune system. If you have HIV, taking ART can reduce the amount of virus in your body so much that it can’t be found in your blood. This is called an undetectable viral load.

When a person with HIV is ‘undetectable’, it means that they cannot transmit HIV through s*x. This is known as U=U (that’s short for undetectable equals untransmittable).

While health outcomes are better than ever for people with HIV in Australia, due to misconceptions about HIV and health impacts, many still experience stigma and discrimination.

Take action to end HIV-related stigma:

• Educate yourself and others about the latest HIV facts, including U=U.
• Challenge HIV stigma when you hear it.
• Use informed and thoughtful language when talking about HIV.
To learn more about HIV and treatment options, visit: shinesa.org.au/HIV

10/06/2026

2026 Riverland NAIDOC Week Calendar of Events is HERE !!

50 Years of Deadly 🙌🏾🔥🖤💛❤️ 🖤🤍💚💙

10/06/2026

🤩 CONGRATULATIONS to Mannum District Hospital Health Advisory Council (HAC) member Barry Burdett who was awarded the Medal of the Order of Australia (OAM) for service to the community of Mannum in the King's Birthday Honours List.

From fighting fires and supporting local healthcare to helping build community projects, Mannum volunteer Barry Burdett has been recognised with an OAM for decades of service to the Mid Murray community.

Link to the full story in the comments 👇

Get the latest sports, news and info direct to your inbox with our email alerts, go to: murrayvalleystandard.com.au/alerts/

09/06/2026

🤩 We are proud to share that Riverland Mallee Coorong Local Health Network CEO, Wayne Champion, has been awarded a Public Service Medal (PSM) in the King’s Birthday 2026 Honours List.

The PSM recognises excellence across the Australian Public Service and is awarded twice a year by the Governor-General as part of the Australia Day Honours List and The King’s Birthday Honours List.

Wayne has been recognised for the extensive work he has undertaken above and beyond his normal Local Health Network (LHN) CEO role.

This includes coordination of the regional response to COVID-19 across all regional Local Health Networks (LHNs), leading the COVID-19 response in the Raukkan community, leading the health response during the Murray River Flood, leading the 2024 system-wide Code Yellow as Incident Commander of the Incident Management Team, and advocating for, and leading, implementation of SA Health’s Sunrise EMR & PAS across regional South Australia, among numerous other digital health initiatives. It also recognises his involvement in establishing the Riverland Academy of Clinical Excellence (RACE).

For more information, and to view the full list of recipients, visit www.gg.gov.au

06/06/2026

🤩 Congratulations to former Riverland Mallee Coorong Local Health Network (RMCLHN) Governing Board Chair and member, Dr Peter Joyner OAM, who received a Rural GP & Rural Generalist (RG) Long Service Award for 50 Years of Service at the Rural Doctors Workforce Agency (RDWA) RG26 Conference in May!

RG26 Conference: Clinical Updates, Connection & Long Service Recognised 🫶

We were delighted to welcome more than 100 rural doctors from across South Australia to this year’s Conference.

As our largest annual CPD event, the Conference brings rural colleagues together for two days of connection, shared experiences, and clinical updates relevant to rural practice in South Australia.

A sincere thank you to our speakers for delivering informative and engaging sessions, all accredited by and .

The Conference concluded with a special gala evening recognising the outstanding commitment and dedication of long-serving rural doctors. We were honoured to have the Minister for Health and Wellbeing, the Hon. Boyer MP, and RDWA Board Chair, Dr Michael Beckoff, present Long Service Awards to the following doctors:

🏅25 Year Award Recipients
Dr Tim Kelly
Dr Simon Lockwood
Dr Sonia Malone
Dr Michael Nugent
Dr Sonia Schutz
Dr Raphael Torome
Dr Elizabeth Parsimei
Dr Ken Fielke

🏅35 Year Award Recipients
Dr Allan Golding
Dr Peter Hamilton
Dr Elizabeth Miller
Dr Mark Miller
Dr Kevin Stanton
Dr Geoff Symons

🏅50 Year Award Recipients
Dr Peter Joyner
Dr WA David Ramsey

👉 Find out more at https://ruraldoc.com.au/conference/

📸 2026 Long Service Award recipients