Catherine Keniry

Associate Head of School

Dr Catherine Keniry

BSc (Hons 1 – Genetics), USyd PhD University of Cambridge, UK

Associate Head of School, Research, Evaluation & Graduate Studies / Senior Lecturer / Senior Research Fellow in Medicine
Orange
Building 1008, Room 238

Catherine leads the medical student research program at the School of Rural Medicine (SRM) and collaborates extensively with a network of rural clinicians, health services and networks to facilitate the execution of relevant and impactful research initiatives. Her primary research interest lies in enhancing health outcomes for individuals residing in rural areas. Consequently, her work emphasizes the development of care models tailored to rural contexts, the examination of disparities in health service delivery, and the evaluation of various service models. Catherine frequently assumes the role of Coordinating Principal Investigator in projects, effectively uniting a diverse group of researchers across multiple health services. This collaborative approach yields a substantial dataset that informs both practice and policy.

In her capacity with the SRM, Catherine is committed to developing research projects of specific interest to students – to ensure their research experience is fun, a wonderful learning journey – and produces results with impact to the communities that are training them. She possesses a particular interest in Indigenous health research. Catherine is deeply committed to enhancing the research capabilities of rural clinicians. She has provided supervision to numerous registrars affiliated with the Australian College of Rural and Remote Medicine (ACRRM) in their Advanced Specialized Training projects. Catherine currently holds a position on the Charles Sturt University Human Research Ethics Committee (HREC) and serves as Co-Chair of the Western New South Wales Health Research Network (WHRN), the peak body for health research in the region.

As at May 2025, Catherine is currently engaged in several significant research projects, including:

  1. Thiamine Administration for Alcohol Use Disorder: A comprehensive review of emergency department practices across four hospitals in NSW (Wagga, Griffith, Orange and Gosford), with plans for expansion to eight hospitals by the end of 2025.
  2. Evaluation of Australia’s First Mobile CT Service Solution: A project aimed at enhancing access to computed tomography services.
  3. Ensuring Medical Termination of Pregnancy Accessibility: An initiative focused on equity in access to computed tomography services in rural and remote areas of Victoria.
  4. Assessing the Impact of Rural Generalist Surgical Services: A study investigating healthcare accessibility and patient outcomes in underserved communities in rural NSW.
  5. Investigating Noise Levels in a Regional Special Care Nursery: A research project examining the effects of educational interventions on neonatal care within this context.
  6. An Examination of the Experiences of Individuals Diagnosed with Klinefelter Syndrome (XXY; KS) and the Perspectives of Parents of Affected Children: A Study Investigating the Diagnostic Journey and Access to Support Services in Rural Regions.
  7. Substance treatment research capacity building in rural and remote NSW: A collaboration between WNSWLHD, RHRI and CSU SRM aims to improve substance treatment service delivery and identify the questions that are most important to improving the delivery of effective healthcare to alcohol and other drug clients in rural and remote areas.
  8. Evaluation of depot buprenorphine (Buvidal®) in Bourke: A project that aims to evaluate the effectiveness and impact of the Buvidal® program in addressing opioid dependence in the rural community of Bourke, NSW
  9. Young men who have sex with men: Improving access to HIV Pre-exposure prophylaxis in an identified high-risk group: A project, led by Dr Brian Sengstock, which was successful in receiving an IDEAS grant in January 2025 ($1.25mil).
  10. ePrescribing and Active Script List awareness and adoption across the Western NSW region: A collaboration between Western PHN and WHRN.

Catherine aims to address critical health challenges faced by rural populations and contribute to the body of knowledge that informs effective, evidence-based healthcare practices and policies.