I recently spoke to a JCU medicine student that my friend introduced to me. This student completed his HSC at Girraween High School and moved interstate to attend JCU. His thoughts on his experience at JCU appear to be consistent with some of your suggestions, such as the notion that this university emphasises the practical aspect of its degrees. Being a smaller university, especially when compared to the significantly larger NSW universities, also means that you would be part of a smaller (and potentially more closely connected) student community than at a larger university. Of course, it is still up to the student to ensure that they engage with the events and programs that their university has to offer.
In terms of whether you should attend JCU, the answer depends on the degree(s) that you are interested in studying. While JCU's overall ranking does provide an indication as to its overall position relative to other universities, it would also be a good idea to have a look at its field-specific ranks, especially those that you are interested in, because some universities may excel at particular fields, while other universities may excel at other fields. In the case of medicine, a university's rank is not important, unlike fields such as law, where the specific university that a graduate attended is taken into consideration.
I hope this helps!