Rural and Remote Health is an open-access international academic journal serving rural and remote communities and publishing articles by rural health practitioners, educators, researchers and policy makers.

Canada is facing a primary care crisis, with rural areas being disproportionately affected by physician shortages. Internationally trained physicians (ITPs) have become essential to addressing rural workforce shortages and constitute more than 80% of rural physicians in Saskatchewan. Given their central role in rural healthcare delivery, understanding ITPs' perceptions of workload sustainability is essential for informing workforce planning, physician wellbeing, and long-term rural retention. The Saskatchewan International Physician Practice Assessment (SIPPA) program offers a unique opportunity to explore ITP experiences. This Original Research study explores how specific workload demands influence self-reported sustainability among SIPPA-participating ITPs.

Type 2 diabetes is a key modifiable risk factor for cardiovascular disease, and the best outcomes are achieved with early diagnosis and management to prevent health complications. However, managing diabetes in remote areas is challenging. The six main communities in the Yolηu region of East Arnhem are, on average, 627 km from the nearest laboratory, making access to pathology results and follow-up of patients logistically challenging. The implementation of portable haemoglobin A1c point-of-care testing (POCT) in outreach, family-based services can reduce barriers related to transportation, waiting times and administrative procedures. This Short Communication reports on agreement analysis between a portable HbA1c POCT system and routine laboratory HbA1c testing in a very remote North East Arnhem Land community, Australia.

Although much has been written about how students develop professionalism and professional identity, less is known about the role and perspectives of clinical supervisors, the relationships that connect or disconnect them from the communities and cultures in which they work, and how these contexts influence students as they develop professionally. This qualitative Original Research study, undertaken in the Northern Territory, Australia, reports on the key challenges and benefits of clinical placements in unique settings, and factors that impact student development and professional identity.