Profile
position: Professor and Head
department: Division of Rural Health (Ukwanda), Department of Global Health
South Africa
Professor Ian Couper is Head of the Division of Rural Health (Ukwanda) and Professor of Rural Health at Stellenbosch University, South Africa. A trained family physician, he spent nine years practising in a remote rural hospital in northern KwaZuluNatal province, and then 16 years working in primary care and health service development in rural North West province. He held the first chair of rural health at the University of the Witwatersrand (Wits). He has chaired both the Rural Doctors Association of Southern Africa (RuDASA) and the Wonca Working Party on Rural Practice (WONCA Rural).
Articles contributed to by this person
Original Research 20 March 2025
Investigating clinical courage: an international survey of rural doctors
Original Research 4 February 2024
Shaping the future rural healthcare landscape: perspectives of young healthcare professionals
Original Research 18 November 2023
Exploring the ideas of young healthcare professionals from selected countries regarding rural proofing
Original Research 31 October 2023
Lessons from innovation in medical education during the COVID-19 pandemic: student perspectives on distributed training
Original Research 7 May 2023
Developing conceptually sound items for a clinical courage questionnaire
Original Research 25 September 2021
The impact of interpersonal relationships on rural doctors’ clinical courage
Editorial 2 July 2021
Researching ‘others’
Editorial 14 June 2020
Surgical care at rural district hospitals in low- and middle-income countries: an essential component of universal health coverage
Editorial 13 June 2020
Support nurses and midwives to strengthen healthcare systems
Review Article 6 March 2018
Transformation of medical education through Decentralised Training Platforms: a scoping review
Original Research 18 December 2017
What are they thinking? Facilitating clinical reasoning through longitudinal patient exposure in rural practice
Rural Health History 28 July 2015
Rural health activism over two decades: the Wonca Working Party on Rural Practice 1992-2012
Editorial 3 December 2014
A new ally for the promotion of better rural health in Latin America
Project Report 16 August 2014
Addressing the shortage of health professionals in South Africa through the development of a new cadre of health worker: the creation of Clinical Associates
Conference Report 8 July 2013
Transforming rural health systems through clinical academic leadership: lessons from South Africa
Original Research 17 March 2011
Rural longitudinal integrated clerkships: lessons from two programs on different continents
Review Article 12 June 2009
A critical review of interventions to redress the inequitable distribution of healthcare professionals to rural and remote areas
Editorial 14 August 2008
The future, our rural populations and climate change - a special issue of Rural and Remote Health
Original Research 30 October 2006
Suicide and attempted suicide: the Rehoboth experience
Editorial 11 September 2006
Health and information in Africa: the role of the journal Rural and Remote Health
Original Research 6 September 2006
What interventions do South African qualified doctors think will retain them in rural hospitals of the Limpopo province of South Africa?
Project Report 24 October 2005
The Neonatal Resuscitation Training Project in Rural South Africa
Original Research 6 October 2005
Management of district hospitals - exploring success
Conference Report 29 September 2005
The most rural conference?
Conference Report 21 May 2004
Reframing the HIV/AIDS debate in developing countries I: setting the scene
Personal View 15 April 2004
Seeking quality: some experiences in South Africa
Personal View 24 July 2003
Rural health focus: organising CPD for rural hospitals
Personal View 17 July 2003
Rural hospital focus: defining rural
Personal View 4 July 2003
Rural hospital focus: students
Personal View 17 June 2003
Rural hospital focus: accommodation
Personal View 10 June 2003
Recruiting foreign doctors to South Africa: difficulties and dilemmas
Personal View 20 May 2003
Rural hospital focus: No transport, no primary health care
Personal View 7 May 2003
Rural hospital focus: staffing
Editorial 22 April 2002
The ethics of international recruitment
Editorial 6 March 2002
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Disadvantage, healthcare access and maternal death in Papua, Indonesia
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Community-based suicide prevention initiatives in rural and remote Australia
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21st WONCA World Rural Health Conference 2026, Aotearoa New Zealand
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24th Annual Rural Health Clinic Conference, 15 & 16 September 2026, Kansas City, MO, USA
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39th Annual AHA Rural Health Care Leadership Conference, 8–11 February 2026, San Antonio, TX, USA
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SARGA 2026, Rural Generalist Anaesthetist Conference, 12–14 February 2026, Barossa Valley, South Australia
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Indigenous Wellbeing Conference 2026, 18–20 February 2026, Enoch, Canada
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Alliance of Rural & Regional Community Health 2026 Conference, 12 & 13 March 2026, Ballarat, Australia
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WA Rural Health Conference 2026, 14 & 15 March 2026, Perth, Australia
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Preventive Mental Health Conference 2026, Parramatta, Dharug Country, Australia, 24 & 25 March 2026
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2026 RMTC Annual Meeting-Charting the Course: Superior Approaches in Rural Medical Education, 8–10 April 2026, Duluth, MN, USA
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21st WONCA World Rural Health Conference, 10–13 April 2026, Te Whanganui-a-Tara Wellington, Aotearoa New Zealand
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33rd Annual Rural and Remote Medicine Conference, 16–18 April 2026, Centre des Congrès de Québec, Quebec City, Canada
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33rd Annual Rural and Remote Medicine Conference, 16–18 April 2026, Quebec City, Canada
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4th EURACT Medical Education Conference, 23–25 April 2026, Iasi, Romania
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29th Annual Michigan Rural Health Conference, 23 & 25 April 2026, Mt Pleasant, MI, USA
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2026 Annual Emergency Medicine with Rural and Indigenous Communities Gathering, 27–30 April 2026, Portland, OR, USA
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2026 Remote Nursing & Midwifery Conference, 11–13 May 2026, Boorloo (Perth), Australia
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2026 31st NRHA Health Access Conference, 18 & 19 May 2026, San Diego, CA, USA
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2026 Rural Medical Education Conference, 19 May 2026, San Diego, CA, USA
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49th Annual NRHA Rural Health Conference, 19–22 May 2026, San Diego, CA, USA
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British Columbia Rural Health Conference, 29–31 May 2026, Prince George, BC, Canada
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2026 Rural Health and Cancer Conference, 2–4 June 2026, Burlington, VT, USA
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2026 Annual National Rural Institute on Alcohol, Drugs, and Addictions, 7–11 June 2026, Menomonie, WI, USA
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11th Health Promotion Conference, 10–12 June 2026, UiT The Arctic University of Norway, Harstad, Norway
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51st Annual National Rural Social Work Conference, 15–18 July 2026, Hopkinsville, KY, USA
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IX Congreso Iberoamericano de Medicina Familiar / Medicina Familiar y Comunitaria, 22–25 July 2026, Asunción, Paraguay
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9th WONCA Africa Region Conference 2026, 10 & 11 September 2026, Gaborone, Botswana
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18th National Rural Health Conference, 14–16 September 2026, Adelaide, SA, Australia
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World Indigenous Suicide Prevention Conference 2026, 17–19 September 2026, Kirikiriroa (Hamilton), New Zealand
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2026 NAATSIHWP National Conference, 21–23 September 2026, Naarm (Melbourne), Australia
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53rd Annual NARMH Conference, 27–29 September 2026, Santa Fe, NM, USA
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15th EURIPA Rural Health Forum, 1–3 October 2026, Cartagena, Spain
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2026 Indigenous Wellbeing Conference, 12–13 October 2026, Ngambri and Ngunnawal Country (Canberra), Australia
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Transforming Community, Regional, and Rural Healthcare, 12 & 13 October 2026, Mayo Civic Center - Rochester, MN, USA
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RMA26 – Rural Medicine Australia Conference, 21–24 October 2026, Tarndanya (Adelaide), Australia
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2026 Aeromed Conference, 28–30 October 2026, Darwin, Australia
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Rural Mental Health Conference 2026, 4–6 November 2026, Gold Coast, Australia
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16th National Rural & Remote Allied Health Conference (SARRAH), 9–11 November 2026, Coffs Harbour, Australia
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IAHA Indigenous Allied Health Australia National Conference, 30 November–2 December 2026, Boorloo (Perth), Australia
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5th International Indigenous Health and Wellbeing Conference, 8–10 June 2027, Larrakia Country, Darwin, NT, Australia
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