Oscar Parry
A Lancefield psychologist has been named as a finalist in three categories of this year’s Victorian Rural Health awards.
Streatfeild and Co Psychology clinic principal, Katrina Streatfeild, was named as a finalist in the categories of Outstanding Contribution to Rural Allied Health, Outstanding Contribution to Rural Practice Management, and Outstanding Contribution by a Mentor-Supervisor.
Ms Streatfeild said she was grateful to be named a finalist and hopes that her work has made a positive impact in the community.
“Living and working in a rural area… There’s just a different sense of community,” she said.
“We work together quite well, which is really important – providers and the community working together to… use the resources we’ve got.”
The award is hosted by Rural Workforce Agency Victoria, an organisation which Ms Streatfeild said has “been fantastic in terms of the support they give in recruiting rural staff and supporting grants for professional development”.
Ms Streatfeild has worked with LaTrobe University Bendigo to host masters placement students at her clinic, which she said serves as both a way of upskilling new psychologists in the intricacies of rural practice and creating a potential staff pipeline for the clinic.
Ms Streatfeild said that retaining staff with expert knowledge is a known issue in non-metro areas, which is a challenge her clinic has focused on overcoming.
“Part of what we’ve tried really hard to do is to get practitioners who have that expert knowledge out here, but also to upskill the local practitioners who we’ve got to try and focus on getting a sustainable rural practice,” she said.
The winners of each category will be announced at a virtual event on Thursday, June 20 from 6-7pm.
