DRIVERS 2026 will explore presentations relevant to rural healthcare, such as:

• Research
• Quality improvement projects
• Innovative service delivery/patient perspectives
• Outcomes in rural and regional settings
• Translating research into clinical practice, practising evidence-based medicine
• Digital health and technology
• Gap analysis/improving equity (from any aspect) Indigenous, Culturally and Racially Marginalised and, LGBTQIA+ populations, Remoteness, etc
• Clinical supervision and mentoring
• Future workforce
• Reflections on your training or workplace
• Reflections on your rural journey in medicine.

Streams

DRIVERS 2026 will encompass three presentation and poster streams. Please note that the timing for presentations is to be determined based on the abstracts received:

Scientific presentations

Longer dynamic oral presentations (~10 min + 5 min Q&A) and sharp rapid-fire presentations (~5 min) showcasing current regional scholarship.

Reflective  presentations

Showcasing Vision, Innovation and Excellence; for discussion of prior insights or activities relating to improving quality in rural and regional health (~10 min).

Case study  presentations

Lightning talks delivering key clinical messages from case studies with lessons for rural and regional health (~3–5 min).

Poster presentations

Displayed throughout the day, with brief Q&A at the allocated poster session.

All abstracts should align with the conference's focus on rural and regional health, including clinical care, research, education, quality improvement and the health of rural and regional communities.

All Scientific, Reflective and Case Study presentations accepted onto the DRIVERS program are allocated to the most appropriate stream by the Committee, either as an oral podium presentation or accepted as a poster for display.

Presentations may not have joint primary authors or presenters. DRIVERS only accepts one presenter per presentation. If co-authors wish to present, each author must apply separately and speak to a different aspect of the research. The Committee expects all abstract submissions to list other authors and affiliations of primary authors if relevant.

By submitting your abstract for consideration, you agree to observe the specified slide and time limits and that you have appropriate consent and will manage the confidentiality of sensitive information presented.

The Committee will not review any Google Documents added to abstract submissions.