Originally a love interest for "heart throb" Stuart Neilson (Martin Henderson), Rachel would go through numerous boyfriends and four husbands including a "will they, won't they?"

She was known for her covering of "ethical issues" such as storylines that featured bulimia, near death experiences, alcoholism, student loan protests, child abuse and being hit by lightning.

Her friendship with Nick Harrison (Karl Burnett) spanned numerous years, saw the two become an iconic coupling and even become briefly married during a protest about student allowances.

To widen demographic audiences, producers ensured Shortland Street featured family units so that several key characteristics could be met (middle aged parents, teenage children).

[12] Television New Zealand assured fans they would not be let down by Rachel's return alongside original character Chris Warner (Michael Galvin), as they would bring a lot of "spice" to the soap.

"[16] She found the storyline where Rachel had her tubes tied and later shook a baby too hard to do and when producers refused to tone the character down, she quit the show and left in 2002.

The following year Rachel dated Manny Atutahi (Albert Belz) but dumped him for Rangi Heremaia (Blair Strang) and also married Nick in a protest on student loans.

However running the new and improved "R Bar" only saw Rachel turn from her poor relationship to drinking and she nearly killed Rangi with car fumes whilst passed out drunk.

Passed out at the Christmas party, Kieran Mitchell (Adam Rickitt) used her state to his advantage and framed her for the hit and run death of Morgan Braithwaite (Bonnie Soper).

Rachel struggled to cope with family life while Chris was out of town and had trouble keeping control of son Harry (Reid Walker), eventually losing her cool and smacking him, despite it being illegal in New Zealand.

Rachel began to suffer severe anxiety attacks following a political undermining at the hospital and the stress of fostering Jared Afeaki (Beulah Koale) with Chris.

Though struggling with Chris' decision to have a child with Grace Kwan (Lynette Forday), the couple finally married and Rachel returned to her role as CEO of the hospital.

Following the shock revelation that Grace and Chris had faked a miscarriage together, the married couple separated and Rachel had a brief fling with Garrett Whitley (Spencer Falls).

Producers realised there would be a notable gap in demographics and the decision was made to expand on the already established character of hospital CEO, Michael McKenna (Paul Gittins).

[39] A writer of the show, Liddy Holloway, was cast as Michael's estranged wife Alex McKenna and Gittins would often joke that she wrote her character the best lines.

Producer Harriet Crampton believed the strained relationship between her and Rachel worked as a result of longevity, "We could only do that with a character who's been on the show for so long that we know she has issues in her past.

'"[43] Bloomfield believed that the absence and early deaths of Rachel's parents influenced the characters development, "She lost them way too soon and she was alone in the world and all she had to fall back on was how they were, which is 'play hard or go home and don't put up with people's bullshit'.

"[31] Storylines surrounding Rachel's reluctance to accept her maternal nature were often dealt with, Bloomfield explained, "I know she likes children, but ... she'll disguise it with a sarcastic remark.

The 1995 storyline that saw the middle aged Jenny Harrison (Maggie Harper) terminate her child was met with clouds of controversy and many complaints to the Broadcasting Standards Authority.

"[23] A storyline that Rachel was often involved with was her alcoholism, Bloomfield enjoyed acting out the illness, "I loved my drinking days and being unstable because there was so much opportunity as an actor to spin out of control, be tortured, then build yourself up again.

[61] The partnership between the two teenage characters worked so effectively due to the solid friendship that occurred between the two actors when Bloomfield joined the show, "When I started on Shortland Street we had that common bond so we could sit down and say, 'You went to Massey' ....

"[61] Storylines between the two characters were often comical, including Bloomfield's highlight where Nick chained himself to a boat during a race, whilst Rachel dressed up as a mermaid and nearly drowned.

[62] Rachel was always intended to be a love interest for established character, Stuart Neilson (Martin Henderson),[6] but Nick developed a one time crush on her upon her arrival that for the most part, went forever unrequited.

[5] Throughout the mid to late nineties, the characters of Rachel, Nick, Fergus Kearney, and Minnie Crozier often shared scenes together due to their age and installed the soap archetype of "hip, young things".

"[61] The storyline culminated in Nick recording himself farting and eating onions in an attempt to rid Rachel's attraction, though all failed and he eventually decided to sleep with her.

[32] That year Rachel accepted a new job in the clinic that would see the character share less screentime with Nick, Bloomfield explained the situation, "I'm not acting all the time with Karl now, which I miss, but which is also quite good for me.

[62] Rachel and "Dr Love" (Chris Warner (Michael Galvin), the show's longest running character) began a relationship in 2002 which would see the two labelled "Shortland Street's golden couple" and would continue in a "will they, won't they" scenario for more than 10 years.

[53] The two's romance became a pivotal point of the 2011 cliffhanger, with the two playing happy families, Rachel was oblivious to the fact Gabrielle Jacobs (Virginie Le Brun) had announced her love to Chris.

"[7] Chris was arrested for murder but eventually released, and the relationship suffered, with Bloomfield explaining: "Rachel feels confused because she naively assumed everything would go back to normal post prison.

[92] Only moments later, a bomb rigged by Josh Gallagher (Chris Tempest) under the influence of his hero syndrome, exploded, collapsing the deck underneath the couple and leaving their fate ambiguous as the season ended.