Keynote Plenary 1: EVOLVE: Surviving the Plateau & Pushing to the Next S Curve
Tracks
room 1
Stream 2
Stream 3
Stream 4
Stream 5
Stream 6
Stream 7
| Saturday, May 23, 2026 |
| 9:15 - 10:00 |
| Pyrmont Theatre |
Details
EVOLVE: Surviving the Plateau & Pushing to the Next S Curve
The messy middle – chaos has to happen, but what are the strategies available to work through it and survive?
The messy middle – chaos has to happen, but what are the strategies available to work through it and survive?
Speaker
Dr Ramya Raman
Vice President and Chair, WA
RACGP
Chairperson
9:15 - 10:00
Dr Ramya Raman is a Specialist General Practitioner, medical educator, and health policy leader. Raised in Orange in Central West NSW, where she lived for over 15 years, she brings a deep, lived understanding of rural and community healthcare to her work.
Now based in Perth for nearly two decades, she is the Director of The Garden Family Medical Clinic in Piara Waters, where she continues in clinical practice and leads a modern, forward-thinking teaching practice. She is also Discipline Head of General Practice at the University of Notre Dame, Fremantle, leading the training of future doctors.
Dr Raman is an experienced board director with a strong focus on governance, strategy, and health system reform. She currently serves as Chair of RACGP WA and Vice President of the RACGP nationally.
Recognised as RACGP WA GP of the Year (2020) and AMA (WA) Advocate of the Year (2024), her leadership is driven by a clear principle: strengthening general practice is essential to strengthening Australia’s health system.
Dr David Glendinning
GP
Lismore Base Hospital
EVOLVE: Surviving the Plateau & Pushing to the Next S Curve
9:15 - 10:00
Dr David Glendinning is a Principal GP and Practice Owner at Goonellabah Medical Centre, in Northern NSW. He supervisors GP Registrars and Medical Students and is a Clinical Lecturer at the University Centre of Rural Health, Lismore. He is a member of the RACGP REC for Practice Technology and Management. He is also the Chief Clinical Information Officer for Northern NSW LHD. Prior to studying Medicine, he worked as a Systems Engineer and Project Manager within the Transport sector.
He and his family relocated from Sydney to the Northern Rivers for a medical student placement 12 years ago, fell in love with the region, and decided to stay
A/Prof Louise Stone
Professor of General Practice at the University of Adelaide
Yarralumla Surgery
EVOLVE: Surviving the Plateau & Pushing to the Next S Curve
9:15 - 10:00
Louise Stone is a GP with clinical, research, teaching and policy expertise in mental health, doctors' health, health services, health policy, ethics and professionalism. She is a Professor of General Practice at the University of Adelaide and practices in Deakin, ACT.
Ms Kate Toon
Business Mentor & Digital Marketing Coach
Stay Tooned Group
EVOLVE: Surviving the Plateau & Pushing to the Next S Curve
9:15 - 10:00
Kate Toon is an award-winning business mentor and digital marketing coach. She’s a down to earth human on a mission to demystify the realities of running a successful online business.
Her Stay Tooned group of companies include the Digital Marketing Collective, The Recipe for SEO Success, The Clever Copywriting School
and The Umina Beach Book Nook.
Kate’s helped more than 20,000 other businesses demystify digital marketing, grapple the Google Beast, and find their own version of success.
Kate is a renowned speaker, podcaster and author, and was named Australia’s Most Influential Small Business Woman (2022), one of Australia’s Top 50 Small Business Leaders (2022), and Businesswoman of the Year and Training & Education Provider of the Year at the national My Business Awards (2020).
She’s the author of Six Figures While You Sleep: How to turn your services and skills into high-profit, low-effort digital products (2024), Six Figures in School Hours: How to run a successful business and still be a good parent (2023), and a resident expert on Kochie’s Business Builders. She’s also the founder of The Digital Marketing Collective Conference, The Digital Marketing Collective Retreat and The Digital Marketing Collective Mastermind
On top of this Kate hosts three podcasts, speaks at events around the world and is learning to rollerskate.
All this from the Toon Cave in her backyard, accompanied by her very own CFO (Chief Furry Office-Dog) Pomplemousse and assisted remotely by a small team of talented humans