Medical administrators from across Australia and beyond will gather in Naarm Melbourne to address key challenges in healthcare, including artificial intelligence, workplace culture, and leadership during disruption.
The Royal Australasian College of Medical Administrators (RACMA) annual conference will take place from 10-13 October 2026. Leaders will discuss how human judgment can build safer, more sustainable health systems amid rapid technological and social shifts.
AI in healthcare: opportunity or risk?
The conference will focus on artificial intelligence in medicine. Keynote speaker Tom Lawry, a former Microsoft executive and author of Hacking Healthcare, will argue that healthcare leaders must shape AI policy rather than observe from the sidelines. They should play an active role in regulation and governance.
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Lawry’s warning comes as the Australian government finalizes its national AI framework. The plan includes establishing an Office for AI and new rules on data center energy use. While he supports the government’s recognition of AI’s potential, he emphasizes that healthcare carries higher stakes than consumer apps or business tools. “Healthcare has to be at the table,” he stated.
His concerns align with a recent report from the Australian Alliance for Artificial Intelligence in Healthcare. The document found regulatory systems unprepared for AI’s rapid adoption. It also noted the absence of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander representation in the government’s AI strategy, raising equity concerns in emerging technologies.
The push for innovation faces regulatory challenges. Lawry compared AI’s potential to past medical breakthroughs like hand hygiene or keyhole surgery, which faced initial skepticism. “The real transformation will come when we rethink healthcare itself,” he said. “Not just digitizing forms, but redesigning diagnosis, triage, and clinical decision-making from the ground up.”
Culture, courage, and uncomfortable truths
The conference will also examine the human side of healthcare leadership. Speakers will address resilience, racism, and systemic barriers that hinder progress.
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The event will include First Nations perspectives. Dr. Glenn Harrison, a Wotjobaluk emergency specialist, will discuss cultural safety as a leadership responsibility. Workshops will explore governance after the “Doctrine of Discovery,” a colonial legal concept that has influenced Indigenous health disparities. A recent tribute to poet Oodgeroo Noonuccal highlighted ongoing efforts to address these issues.
Early bird registrations are open. The program combines high-profile speakers, interactive workshops, and debates. Whether AI’s benefits outweigh its risks, or whether Australia’s healthcare leaders can address cultural issues, may depend on the discussions in Naarm Melbourne.
The climate crisis also poses growing security threats to health systems, adding urgency to these conversations.