After more than a decade of study, training, and cross-state commutes, Dr Amelia Russell has returned to the Bega Valley - the place she now calls home and where her future lies. Amelia is a Palliative Care Staff Specialist for the Coastal Network and the Academic Coordinator for the ANU Rural Medical School in Bega.
She is also a proud resident of the Bega Valley, living with her husband Will, on a sixth-generation family dairy farm just five minutes from South East Regional Hospital (SERH).
Amelia’s path to this role was anything but easy. After growing up in the Hunter Valley, she went on to study medicine at UNSW and completed much of her training in Wagga and Canberra.
But it was at uni where she met a strapping young farmer from Bega by the name of Will, who was studying mechanical engineering at the time. After finding each other, the couple were determined early on that Bega would be where they’d eventually settle.
But plans such as this are never straight forward. Becoming a rural specialist in palliative care required years of dedication, including three years of training in Canberra, so that meant weekly six-hour return trips to and from Bega.
“There was no way to train locally,” Amelia said. “I’d finish the week in Canberra and drive straight back to Bega every weekend. It was the only way to keep our connection to home - and it was worth it.”
Amelia began her role as Palliative Care Specialist with Southern in March 2025, fulfilling a dream that began six years earlier when she cold-called Director of Medical Services, Dr Liz Mullins, to express her commitment to working in the region.
“She wanted to know how she could become a palliative care physician and what she needed to do; because she was keen to relocate to Bega and that’s what she did,” Liz said.
SNSWLHD Executive Dr Elizabeth Mullins Amelia is a wonderful example of actively choosing to work in rural Australia, following her dream and bringing the very best of medical knowledge and care to our community.
Dr Liz Mullins
Amelia describes palliative care as ‘deeply human’. “It’s about improving the quality of the time people have left, relieving suffering, and treating people as people, not just patients. That human element is what first drew me in.”
Amelia’s commitment also extends to education and mentoring the next generation. As Academic Coordinator for ANU’s Rural Clinical School in Bega, she supports medical students on rural placements, sharing her own journey and success stories - like those of SERH Anaesthetist Dr Nathan Oates and Surgeon Dr Jeffrey Van Gangelen, the school’s first graduates - to inspire more doctors to consider a future in regional health.
“The main aim of ANU clinical school is to increase the number of rural doctors and GPs in our region,” Amelia said.
“We don’t just want students to experience great medicine - we want them to experience the relaxed lifestyle and the wonderful community here on the Far South Coast which really sells itself.”
Looking ahead, Amelia hopes to expand training opportunities locally through her involvement with the Rural and Remote Institute of Palliative Medicine (RRIPM), helping to grow the palliative care workforce in rural areas.
Amelia Russell and Hephner the alpaca After more than a decade of planning, sacrifice and travel, I’m finally living and working where I truly want to be.
Dr Amelia Russell
“I feel like a complete person now - doing work I love, in a community I care deeply about and I just couldn’t be happier.”
And there’s more joy to come: Amelia and Will are expecting their first child in November, beginning a new chapter for the family in the community they’re proud to call home.
Inspired by Amelia's story? Join our medical team and embark on a rewarding journey in rural and regional healthcare with Southern.