Dr Katie Blunt, Co-chair

Dr Katie Blunt is a junior doctor based at Bendigo Health with a passion for regional and rural medicine. She completed her clinical placements as a student in north-west Victoria via the Monash University Extended Rural Cohort. She has a blossoming interest in pursuing a career in obstetrics and gynaecology and is the current bi-national co-chair of the Prevocational Obstetrics & Gynaecology Society of Australia and New Zealand. She is currently Medical Education Officer for the Bendigo HMO Society. Katie is a semi-retired water polo player. She enjoys staying active, traveling and visiting her family.

Dr Jessica Paynter, Co-chair

Dr Jessica Paynter is currently PGY2 at Bendigo Health. She grew up in the Loddon Mallee region and is committed to rural and regional medicine. She was part of the Monash University Extended Rural Cohort, completing all of her clinical placements in Mildura, Swan Hill and Bendigo. She is committed to improving the health and health literacy of people from the bush. Jess is an avid runner and triathlete and has a new-found love for gardening.

Dr Carl Barker, Secretary 

Dr Carl Barker is a doctor keen on staying in rural areas. He grew up on a farm. As a young person he was impressed by how the people in his hometown were looked after by dedicated rural health workers. He is committed to supporting future rural doctors to complete their training in rural areas. Carl believes that living in the bush is the best. He makes the most of rural life by taking his dogs for walks in the scrub and hitting the trails with his mountain bike.

Dr Leanne Boyd, Liaison and Logistics Officer

Dr Leanne Boyd is an O&G Registrar currently working at Bendigo Health. Originally from the UK, she has worked in healthcare for 15 years. She started out as a nurse in Cardiothoracic theatres before retraining at St George’s, University of London, and gaining her first job in South West London. She moved to Melbourne in 2019. While working at Monash Health she reaffirmed her passion for Women’s Health and committed to a permanent move Down Under. She spent 18 months working in Mildura as a Registrar and fell in love with Regional Victoria. Leanne has applied for the Regional training programme and hopes Bendigo will become her permanent home.

Dr Mayank Koppa, Education and Evaluation Officer

Dr Mayank Koppa is currently an Intern at Bendigo Health. He is a former Monash University Extended Rural Cohort student and has spent time in Bendigo, Mildura, and Swan Hill. He is enthusiastic about promoting rural health and has a keen interest in data analytics. He has been involved with both published and ongoing research projects. Mayank has a strong interest in critical care medicine and has aspirations to become an anaesthetist.

Dr Joshua McAdams, Strategic Planning Officer

Dr Joshua McAdams is currently undertaking PGY2 as a Resident at Bendigo Health. He lived and studied in Gippsland for multiple years during his training before completing his intern year in Bendigo. He is passionate about rural and regional medicine. He has seen first-hand how difficult career advancement and research opportunities can be for medical students and junior doctors in non-metropolitan areas. Josh is excited by the opportunity to be involved in the inaugural DRIVERS conference - he can't wait to see how big it will become.

Dr Callum Nguyen, Social Officer

Dr Callum Nguyen is currently an Intern at Bendigo Health. He has a passion for critical care, perioperative medicine and rural healthcare. He hopes to pursue a career in anaesthesia. He is ecstatic to be part of the DRIVERS steering committee, providing an opportunity to recognise excellence across rural and regional Victoria. Outside of medicine, you can find Callum barracking for the Western Bulldogs, attempting latte art and obsessing over film emulations.

Dr Mark Ranasinghe

Dr Mark Ranasinghe is an Intern at Bendigo Health with a strong interest in research. He believes that DRIVERS 2021 will reflect the unique landscape of rural medicine. He is passionate about promoting research and academia in regional areas. He has presented at a number of international conferences and also helped organise the International Conference of Undergraduate Research (ICUR), hosted by Monash University and the University of Warwick. Mark hopes to contribute what he has learnt from these experiences to this celebration of rural and regional academia.

Dr Jake Bray-Butler, Co-chair 

Dr Jake Bray-Butler is currently PGY3 completing a Critical Care year at Bendigo Health. He is interested in pursuing a career in Intensive Care medicine. He is also interested in medical administration, with a focus on quality improvement and digital health. He is a Certified Health Informatician of Australasia and has also completed a Masters of Bioethics and a Graduate Certificate in Data Science. Jake is passionate about rural health. He hopes to use his skills to improve health systems in rural and regional Australia.

Dr Laura Panozzo, Co-chair

Dr Laura Panozzo is a research fellow with Monash University. She is experienced in both quantitative and qualitative research methods. She has published widely in Australian and international journals. She completed a first-class honours thesis on content and implementation of advance care directives in Regional Victoria. Her current research projects centre around Palliative Medicine, Oncology, and rural and regional healthcare. Laura is passionate about building research capacity in regional healthcare services. She hopes to complete physician training in both General and Palliative Medicine and practise in regional Victoria.

Dr Sarah Holt

Dr Sarah Holt is a paediatrically inclined junior Registrar finding her feet in Critical Care specialties. She originally hails from outer-eastern Melbourne. She describes herself as the epitome of, ‘if you give a medical student a choice about where to go, they’ll stay there forever’. She chose to train in north-west Victoria and has loved it so much that she has not left. She has plans to return to Bendigo when she is qualified to finish setting up a regional Paediatric Critical Care service.

Associate Professor Janelle Brennan

Associate Professor Janelle Brennan is a Urologist who has lived and worked in the Bendigo region for the last ten years. She is currently the Head of Urology at Bendigo Health, Principal Investigator on two local clinical trials and holds a number of professional appointments, including USANZ representative on the Royal Australasian College of Surgeons’ Rural Health Equity Advisory and Reference Group. As Director of the North West Victorian Regional Training Hub, Janelle leads a team focused on improving training opportunities for junior doctors in the Loddon Mallee region. When not working, Janelle tries to play golf, enjoy good food and wine, tinker with Lego and watch her beloved Richmond Tigers with her dog, Dusty.