Bringing health and aged care locum assistance to rural and remote Australia
Rural LAP is a component of the Australian Government’s rural workforce capacity agenda. We support eligible aged care workers, nurses, midwives, obstetricians, anaesthetists, and allied health professionals.

Looking for locum work?
Travel, meet new people, develop new skills and work in some of the most beautiful places, from the countryside to outback Australia.

Supporting Aged Care
Ensuring service delivery continues for rural and remote aged care services impacted by sudden departures, annual leave, and training.

Locum support made easy
Rural LAP offers a simple, streamlined process for requesting locum support.
Read our Locum Stories

The Changing Face of Aged Care
Lauri Buckingham has worked as a registered nurse with the Rural Locum Assistance Program (Rural LAP) almost full-time for over ten years. During this time, Lauri travelled thousands of kilometres around the country, predominantly to rural multipurpose services (MPS).
An MPS is a small country hospital that has evolved into a multipurpose facility with an aged care component. Each facility is unique and varies in size and complexity in the services it provides to the community.
“Initially, I did not choose to commit to the aged care field.
However, I soon learned that it is a rapidly expanding phenomenon and that we are all engaged somehow.
There is now a higher percentage of the population that is elderly and vulnerable than ever before and, within that situation, lays a real challenge that, during my travels, I find each site is endeavouring to meet in its own way.”

A sense of community
As most of us are heading off to bed, a new world is opening up for registered nurse Glenda George, on the night shift in an aged care facility.

Healthcare Heroes Brave Rising Waters
A Glimpse into Navigating a Moderate Flood Event in a Remote Community.

Who is the
Rural LAP?
We are a locum assistance program for health and aged care services across rural and remote Australia. We support eligible aged care workers, nurses, midwives, obstetricians, anaesthetists, and allied health professionals to take CPD or recreation leave.