A holiday in North Queensland changed Charmaine Pangi’s life.
The Bowen Advanced Indigenous Health worker has dedicated nearly three decades to improving the health outcomes of First Nations people on Juru Country (Bowen).
Her dedication to culturally safe healthcare and compassionate leadership earned her the 2025 Closing the Gap Award at the recent Let’s Celebrate Mackay HHS People awards.
Originally from Shepparton in Victoria, Charmaine is a proud Yorta Yorta, Barapa Barapa, Wemba Wemba woman.
She holidayed in the region in 1996 and was so impressed by its natural beauty and welcoming community that she decided to relocate north.
“The Bowen region offers the best lifestyle you could want for yourself and your family – it’s not hectic, just nice and pleasant, there are great schools and lots of outdoor activities on offer, including walking tracks and beautiful beaches to explore,” Charmaine said.
“Bowen Hospital is a beautiful place to work and the town is situated along a beautiful coastline. We are truly blessed to work and live in such a beautiful part of North Queensland.”
Charmaine was a community development officer for Girudala Co-op, which provided programs and services in the areas of First Nations health promotion, affordable housing, home care, family wellbeing support, employment and training.
For four years, she built a wide network of contacts within community groups and organisations in Bowen and Collinsville, establishing herself as a strong voice for the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander community.
“I built a rapport with the Deputy Mayor at the time, who just so happened to be the director of nursing at Bowen Hospital and we discussed me coming to work for Queensland Health as an Indigenous health worker,” Charmaine said.
In the 21 years since, she hasn’t looked back.
On 7 August, the Mackay HHS will celebrate the National Day of Recognition for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander health workers and practitioners.
“My responsibilities in this role are advocating for and on behalf of any Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander patients who attend the Bowen Hospital or Community Health Services,” she said.
“I also follow up on discharge of any First Nations patients after leaving the hospital with any future appointments in either Mackay or Townsville and assist with transport and accommodation needs by liaising with other indigenous health workers in major hospitals.”
A regular day for Charmaine starts at 7am in ED with a check if any indigenous patients need support and also includes multi-disciplinary meetings to discuss ward patient handovers, a visit to the renal unit to check on the well-being of inpatients, as well as home visits with the Nurse Navigator or midwives. She also attends community meetings to educate and empower the First Nations community about patient travel or hospital admissions and conducts an outreach service in Collinsville every second Wednesday.
The key to her nomination for this year’s staff awards was the essential cultural support she offered a family grieving the loss of a loved one. Charmaine engaged closely with the family elders and community, ensuring they were supported in navigating difficult moments, making a meaningful difference to the family’s experience.
Her ability to collaborate with Bowen hospital staff to make sure cultural needs were understood and respected was described by colleagues as “both beautiful and invaluable”.
“Honestly, I was so overwhelmed I could not believe that I was even nominated for the award, then when my name was called out at the gala event, I was just in shock to win; the tears came and I couldn’t stop,” Charmaine said.
“I am so proud of my achievement and so appreciative of the Mackay HHS honouring me with the Closing the Gap Award and acknowledging the work I do here in Bowen and Collinsville.”
Charmaine credits the unwavering support of her colleagues within the health service, along with the diverse and often demanding challenges of the job, as key factors contributing to her deep sense of satisfaction and purpose in her role. She believes this strengthens her commitment to advancing Indigenous health outcomes but also empowers her to grow personally and professionally.
“My work colleagues are a great bunch of people, we have many different cultures and nationalities, so we try to acknowledge some days of significance by sharing food as a celebration for that specific day or week,” she said.
“I love my job and my workplace and I am here until my body says it’s time to retire; hopefully that’s not for a while yet.”