But in pharmacist Kaail Bohm's days at the Charles Sturt University's Wagga Wagga campus, where he was on scholarship as an Indigenous student, he'd known he was happier being at home at Narromine.

The Bohms are Narromine Shire locals, his grandparents in their late 80s, his English-German father Geoff born here, his Wiradjuri mother Debbie, and Kaail's three sisters.

Except for his oncology nurse younger sister working in Queensland, everyone's home is in the shire of nearly 4,000 residents, 40 kilometres west of Dubbo city, located by the riverside and a destination for gliders with its rich early aviation history.

"We are so lucky we all live nearby and if you were to throw a blanket over us, you could do it. If I go five streets up, my sister lives there and a few houses up are my mum and dad. If I go another five streets in the other direction, my other sister and grans are there," Mr Bohm said.

"My grandma is 87 and still going strong, very active and I'm taking her out cutting firewood next week. She loves being involved and going outdoors.

He was so comfortable with country life, that between uni breaks, he was headed home to spend holidays at home with his parents.

To earn pocket money, he'd work at Fletcher's Abattoir. "I'd ring them a couple of weeks beforehand 'hey guys I'm gonna be home any work you want done?'".

"I'd work in hot and cold rooms, cleaning the floor, packing meats next day, or loading lambs in the cool room while having a good laugh with a great bunch of guys."

He saved money staying near home while getting good pay at Fletcher's, and saved more while on scholarship that put him on track to finishing his pharmacy degree with offers of local internships as well as working at Canberra Hospital.

The lure of working in a big city after graduation did not attract him as a young man though he was cherishing big dreams to carve a career path to get ahead in life.

"Work can be enjoyed anywhere and that's important [to keep in mind] and workplace is a big part of that," Mr Bohm said, reflecting on a lucrative offer for a start-up venture with Tony Lawler's pharmacy chain, Terry White Chemmart Pharmacies.

It's been 12 years since Mr Bohm opened the Delroy branch of Terry White Chemmart at Dubbo, where he is among 160 pharmacies taking care of people's health in NSW.

His former teachers are among those whose health and welfare he looks after, too. "In high school, I played sports four nights a week with other kids and indoor sports at night playing against my teachers.

"I was at the pub the other night with my former mathematics teacher who was dad's former PE teacher, it's awesome and it's not always you get that human connection."

This year, Mr Bohm scooped the state award for the Pharmacist of the Year, for his outstanding service and leadership in his community, traits he was judged as the winner from among over 600 pharmacists across the country, that he credits to his mentors -Tony Lawler, Sally Sheehan, Amanda Taylor, and Mike Anderson.

The Lawler's pharmacy chain has been operating across NSW since 1958 and it was at the Lawler's Narromine outlet where Mr Bohm spent most of his internships. "They operated the pharmacy with lots of fun for us and knowing everybody that walks in the door, to me that was lovely, and it's huge."

At 38, Mr Bohm and his wife Stacey have two daughters, Murphy and Kennedy, who'd someday perhaps choose the same route their inspiring parents took.

Stacey's agribusiness degree propelled her corporate world career as ANZ branch manager in Dubbo, and later moved into running her own business, The Grazier's Table, while raising the girls.

"When you're younger you'd feel the excitement to stay in the bigger city and that's great but as you get older, things change.

"You can live and work in regional areas and we should be open to many opportunities available.

"We are now seeing that in Dubbo with the massive number of people moving here because of affordability and they see a good place with good people over the Blue Mountains."

Mr Bohm said filling up the current shortage of workers in the region would depend on the framework the three tiers of government would lay out to get more people moving into rapidly growing regional areas like Dubbo.

"We mustn't just stick them in front of the computer, we should also show them what's great about the town.. and what's to do out there outside of work.

"Dubbo and Narromine councils are both working hard drawing people into our area and we are already seeing appealing activities.

"They're bringing more cultural life into the town, more events, and it's making itself a well-known place to come and visit...There's plenty of work out there, we just need people."