Steph paves the way for country health advocacy – with MERCI Co
Having a child with a rare disease is challenging enough without the added disadvantages of regional isolation. Stephanie March’s lived experience ignited a passion for rural health advocacy, aiding many regional families facing similar
circumstances.
Living on a farm at Willamulka, near Bute, Steph is a woman of many talents. A qualified occupational therapist and school teacher, as well as being involved in the family’s agribusiness, she is the sort of person always ready to rise to a challenge.
Steph and her husband Cameron already had a daughter, Lexi, when baby Bill came onto the scene a decade ago.
“Our son was born with a condition called primary ciliary dyskinesia,” Steph said. “The closest thing to compare that to is Cystic Fibrosis, but they are very different conditions. I’ve had 10 years navigating the health service as a rural family, travelling frequently to Adelaide to access specialised care. When you spend lots of time doing that, you soon identify gaps in services and realise how tricky some things can be. I figured that if it’s taken me five years to find out about services, rebates or resources, it was important to share this information back to other families.”
Steph has delivered her knowledge far and wide. She was Keynote speaker at the International Day of Rural Women in Adelaide in 2024, addressed the Thriving Women Conference, has spoken to many health professionals, and shared her
message on podcasts. Earlier this year, she was awarded Copper Coast Council Citizen of the year for her volunteer work and health advocacy. Although modest about her achievements, Steph sees every opportunity she takes as a way to raise awareness of rare diseases and health equity.
“I’ve been a consumer advocate at the Women’s and Children’s Hospital in Adelaide and have joined various committees where I’ve been able to give lots of feedback. It was really important for me to do that because I wanted to make sure there was a rural voice at the table.”
As Steph’s influence grew, her website MERCI CO also started to evolve. An acronym for Motivate, Educate, Respect, Connect, Inspire, it is a site dedicated to empowering families raising children with medical challenges, particularly in rural
and regional communities.
In February this year, Steph was announced as a recipient of an AgriFutures Rural Women’s Acceleration Grant, receiving $7000 toward professional development. There was little doubt this would go toward developing MERCI CO.
“I like to refer to MERCI CO as a bit of a passion project, but it definitely is developing into a social enterprise,” Steph said.
“Being awarded the AgriFutures Acceleration Grant has given me the opportunity to work with a regionally based business coach for the next 12 months. My passion is 100 per cent around helping rural families and improving access to
healthcare. We so often see that access and equity can be different between city and regions. It’s around making sure families feel supported and advocating for systematic change.”
Steph is also seeking opportunities to further develop her guest speaking role – “I want to continue keynote speaking and guest speaking, and potentially do workshops for families and health professionals. It’s important to continue to bring that lived experience into decision making.”
In the meantime, Bill and the rest of her family are at the heart of everything Steph does. “The challenges were immense, the learning curve steep, and the sense of isolation at times overwhelming,” Steph says of their journey with Bill’s condition.
“Yet, amid these trials, there was an undeniable thread of beauty and resilience that wove through our experiences. We always find a way to weave resilience and positivity into our everyday life.”
