Appendix 4

Members of the Aged Care Workforce Strategy Taskforce

Members of the Aged Care Workforce Strategy Taskforce
Name
Expertise
Professor John Pollaers OAM (Chair)
John Pollaers has a proven track record in leading major Australian and international companies including Pacific Brands and Foster’s Group, and in his current role is working across Government to bring about major reforms to vocational education and training and aged care. This is the realisation of his vision of building a strong future for Australia by creating opportunities for people and businesses to flourish and succeed. He is a passionate advocate for education and training, the care of senior Australians and including more people with disability in work and training.
John is Chair of the Australian Industry and Skills Committee, the Australian Advanced Manufacturing Council, a member of Prime Minister’s Industry 4.0 Taskforce, and an advisory board member at Melbourne University’s Centre for Workplace Leadership. He runs his own business and sits on an international board.
Dr Michelle Bruniges AM
Secretary, Department of Education and Training, Australian Government
Michelle Bruniges is the Secretary of the Department of Education and Training, administering the Australian Government’s interests in quality early learning, schooling, higher education, international education and research, skills and training. She has held this position since April 2016. Prior to this, she led the NSW Department of Education and Communities, and the ACT Department of Education. Michelle has held senior roles in the Australian Government’s Department of Education, Employment and Workplace Relations. She is a graduate of the Australian Institute of Company Directors, a Churchill Fellow and a Fellow of the Australian College of Educators and the Australian Council for Educational Leaders. In 2012 Michelle was recognised for her work in public policy as a joint recipient of the Inaugural 100 Women of Influence Awards.
Dr Penny Flett AO
Pro Vice Chancellor, University of Western Australia
Penny Flett is Pro-Chancellor and Senate member of the University of Western Australia. She is the chair of the Methodist Ladies’ College (WA) and Chair of the Bravery Decorations Council. She is a former Chief Executive Officer of the Brightwater Care Group (WA) providing residential and at-home services for elderly and young disabled people. She has been a Board member of the Positive Ageing Foundation in Western Australia and the State Training Board of Western Australia. As Chair of the WA Aged Care Advisory Council, she oversaw development of a State Aged Care Plan. Penny was named Telstra Australian Business Woman of the Year in 1998.
Maria Jolly
First Assistant Secretary, Aged Care Reform and Compliance Division, Department of Health, Australian Government (from May 2018)
Maria Jolly has expertise in a range of health programs and policy development processes. She has had experience in managing strategic policy development, the medical benefits schedule, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Health, rural health, primary care policy and health workforce. Roles have been primarily in health with some time also spent in Prime Minister and Cabinet and Finance (many years ago).
Maria has formal qualifications in sociology with postgraduate units in epidemiology, history, Aboriginal development and health economics.
Dr Stephen Judd
CEO Hammondcare
With over 25 years’ experience in the health care and information technology industries, Stephen Judd has previously held Director positions on a number of bodies including Aged Care Services (NSW & ACT) and the Community Council for Australia. He has written, edited and contributed to books on dementia care and aged care design. Stephen is a member of the Advisory Council of the Australian Aged Care Quality Agency and the Aged Care Sector Committee.
Professsor Linda Kristjanson AO
Vice-Chancellor, Swinburne University
Linda Kristjanson is Vice-Chancellor of Swinburne University of Technology and is a Fellow of the Australian Institute of Company Directors and the Australian Academy of Technology & Engineering (ATSE). She chairs AuScope Ltd and the Victorian Comprehensive Cancer Centre. Linda was a member of the National Health and Medical Research Council from 2003-2006. In 2012 she was recognised for her research in palliative care with a lifetime achievement award by the Bethlehem Griffith Research Foundation. In 2002, Linda was named the Australian Telstra Business Woman of the Year in recognition of her entrepreneurial work in health, science and innovation.
Adjunct Professor Alan Lilly
Former Chief Executive, Blue Cross
Alan Lilly was Chief Executive of BlueCross in Victoria from September 2016 to July 2018 and holds a concurrent appointment as an Adjunct Professor of the Australian Catholic University. He has predominantly worked in the Victorian Public Health System, including as Chief Executive of Eastern Health in Victoria for more than seven years prior to taking up his BlueCross position.
A Registered Mental Health Nurse and Registered General Nurse by background, with post graduate management qualifications, he has presented extensively on matters related to recruitment, workforce development, quality and safety, and has also published articles on leadership, culture and workforce development.
Alan is a Board Director of the Aged Care Guild, a Board Member of the Monash Institute for Health & Clinical Education Advisory Board and a member of the Dementia Support Australia Expert Reference Group. He is a Fellow of the Australian Institute of Management, an Associate Fellow of the Australian College of Health Service Management and a Member of the Australian Institute of Company Directors.
Professor Andrew Robinson
Adjunct Professor, Wicking Dementia Research and Education Centre, University of Tasmania, Director Dementia Training Australia and Principal Research and Innovation, Gravitas leadership Group
Professor Robinson was Co-Director of the Wicking Dementia Research and Education Centre and Professor of Aged Care Nursing at the University of Tasmania until September 2017. He is recognised as a national and international leader and innovator in aged care and has led translational research and innovation projects involving a broad range of community and residential aged care services across Australia.
He is an international leader in dementia education through the Wicking Teaching Aged Care Facility program and a key driver of strategic innovation in research and online delivery systems such as Massive Open On-line course (MOOC) learning platforms. He played a central role in developing the world leading Understanding Dementia MOOC and the highly innovative and successful on-line Bachelor of Dementia Care program run through the Wicking Centre. As Director of Dementia Training Australia he is leading programs to develop on-line dementia products for the aged care workforce.
Ms Catherine Rule
First Assistant Secretary Aged Care Reform Taskforce, Department of Health
Catherine Rule oversaw policy, funding, and regulatory activities for the ageing and aged care system, including residential care, home care and the Commonwealth Home Support Program from November 2017 to May 2018. Catherine joined the Department of Health in July 2015, having held senior executive positions in the Department of Human Services and the Australian Sports Drug Agency.
Mr Tim Shackleton
Chief Executive Officer, Rural Health West
Tim Shackleton was appointed CEO of Rural Health West in 2016, the sole agency in Western Australia dedicated to rural health workforce. He has 25 years of experience in the rural health sector. Between 2011 and 2016, he was the director of health services consulting firm Virtual Health and led a wide-range of health consultancy projects for high profile clients across Australia. Tim had previously served as CEO of the Royal Flying Doctor Service of Australia (Western Operations) and Regional Director for the WA Country Health Service in the Pilbara-Gascoyne and Wheatbelt Regions. He is immediate past chair of the Wheatbelt Development Commission and the WA Regional Development Council, and is currently chair of the WA Pastoral Lands Board.
Ms Pat Sparrow
Chief Executive Officer, Aged & Community Services Australia (ACSA)
Pat Sparrow is a social policy leader and innovator with expertise in stakeholder engagement and management. She has specific and detailed expertise in ageing policy and aged care, having worked as, and with, a diverse range of stakeholders including consumers, service providers, workforce, health professionals, corporate organisations and Government. This unique ‘360 degree’ perspective ensures that Pat’s leadership approach is strategic and nuanced, inclusive and collaborative.
Pat is currently leading Aged & Community Services Australia (ACSA) toward a new era, as a recently-transitioned national organisation and with the challenges it faces in an increasingly competitive, consumer-driven environment. She is focused on ensuring the organisation has genuine respect and influence among key stakeholders through the establishment of a strong national voice. Pat’s breadth of knowledge, depth of experience and constructive approach enable her to achieve results that benefit ACSA members and contribute to the best possible outcomes for older Australians.
Mr Ian Yates AM
Chief Executive, COTA Australia (Council on the Ageing)
Ian Yates serves as the COTA representative on the Aged Care Sector Committee, the National Aged Care Alliance (NACA), and various other advisory bodies. He is a member of the Aged Care Financing Authority, the Advisory Council of the Australian Aged Care Quality Agency, and was a Director of the Aged Care Standards and Accreditation Agency Ltd.
Ian chaired the NACA Working Group on Workforce that advised the government during the development of the Living Longer Living Better Reforms, and Co-Chairs NACA’s Blueprint and Roadmap Implementation Group. He served for 20 years as a member of the Council of Flinders University, including lengthy periods as Deputy Chancellor, Chair of the Strategic Resources Committee and Chair of the Audit Committee.
Source: Department of Health, About Aged Care Workforce Strategy Taskforce, https://agedcare.health.gov.au/reform/about-aged-care-workforce-strategy-taskforce (accessed 1 April 2019).

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