Forum 2019 - Speakers

• Adri Isbister
• Aiolupotea Matafanua Hilda Fa'asalele
• Beverly Te Huia
• Dr Barbara Disley
• Daniel Glover
• Hon Dr David Clark
• Dr Garth Bennie
• John Whaanga
• Keriana Brooking
• Dr Lloyd McCann
• Dr Maria Baker
• Robyn Shearer
• Sharon Shea

Adri Isbister: Deputy Director-General, Disability

Adri came to us from the Wairarapa DHB where she was CEO. During her tenure, Adri led the development of cross-sector work and the implementation of Health Care Home, a primary care initiative.

Adri has over 25 years’ experience in the health and disability sector. She is the former leader of LIFE Unlimited, a national health and disability service provider. She also supported the implementation of the New Zealand Disability Strategy and has held governance positions within the national Needs Assessment Service Co-ordination Association (NASCA) and disability information services.

Adri holds an executive Masters in Business Administration and has received two business excellence awards.

Aiolupotea Matafanua Hilda Fa'asalele​: Chief Advisor Pacific Health

A Registered Nurse, I have worked for over 30 years in many roles within diverse health and community settings -  these include a Pacific PHO, National Well  Child Tamariki ora Provider, Health Auditing, Pacific Sexual & Reproductive health education Provider in schools, DHB, and now Ministry of Health.

Prior to coming to the Ministry I was the GM Pacific for Auckland District Health Board. 

I have been in my current role for the past 6 years and contribute to different programmes across the Ministry and in the wider community. 

I am part of a large diverse Samoan family, who have been in NZ since my father arrived in Auckland in 1953.  My two chief/matai titles (Aiolupotea and Matafanua) represent my family lineage, and the leadership responsibility I hold within these families. 

Health equity for Pacific Peoples has been a significant focus of my work, and I enjoy working alongside our Pacific health Providers, and Pacific health workforce to support their work, and to achieve outcomes to improve health. 

Beverly Te Huia

Ko Takitimu tōku waka
Ngāti Kahungunu rawa, ko Ngāi Tahu tōku iwi
Ko Mihiroa tōku Marae
Ko Beverly Te Huia ahau

Beverly Te Huia’s Māori whakapapa, both men and women, have always been involved in delivering babies. She has three children and fifteen years midwife experience. Beverley has postgraduate diplomas in Midwifery and Health Science and is currently completing her thesis titled ‘Māori Reality- Addressing Disparities in Content’. She runs Ngā Maia Māori Midwives Aotearoa which acknowledges whānau desire to have birthing knowledge that upholds the significance of creation and the mana of all involved in the process of birth. The vision is to provide Kaupapa Māori resources for whānau to access to weave the concepts:

• that speak to the whānau into their birthing stories
• to provide a space for Māori midwives to generate and debate our ways of knowing and walking beside whanau

Read more about Beverly.

Dr Barbara Disley

Chief Executive Emerge Aotearoa, a large national mental health, and drug and alcohol NGO. Barbara has worked in a number of non-government organisation Chief Executive roles including the Mental Health Foundation, Richmond Fellowship and now Emerge Aotearoa.

Barbara was the inaugural chair of the Mental Health Commission, leading the development of the first Mental Health Blueprint. She was Deputy Secretary, Ministry of Education where she had responsibility for special education.  She was a member of the Confidential Listening and Assistance Service, the forum set up for people who had been abused while in State Care in New Zealand and chaired the Review of the Sensitive Claims area of ACC, which supports victims of abuse.

Over the past year Barbara was a member of the Inquiry Panel set up by the Government to review mental health and addictions. In 2011 Barbara was made an Officer of the New Zealand Order of Merit for services to mental health.

Daniel Glover

Daniel is the Manager Sector Engagement and Strategy in the Health Workforce Directorate at the Ministry of Health.  His team has a close working relationship and provides secretariat support to the interim Health Workforce Committee, advisory groups, regional directors of workforce and the wider sector. They take the lead within the directorate on the development and maintenance of the national health workforce strategy and other key workforce projects.

Daniel has been at the Ministry of Health for a year, previously from the New Zealand Cancer Society as the Marketing and Communications Manager overseeing media relations, advocacy and sector engagement, and previous to that ten years at ACC as Brand and Communications Manager responsible for customer and stakeholder experience and reputation. He has also previously held senior roles in Australia and the UK.

Hon Dr David Clark

Hon Dr David Clark was first elected as the Labour Member of Parliament for Dunedin North in 2011. He came to Parliament via a circuitous route – having run a University of Otago residential College, worked as a Presbyterian Minister, and worked as a Treasury analyst.

One of the key reasons David stood for Parliament was because he was concerned about the growing gap between rich and poor, which he sees as limiting New Zealand’s social and economic potential. Inequality featured strongly in his maiden address to the House of Representatives in 2012. He believes we can, and must, achieve a fairer society where everyone has an opportunity to succeed.

 

Dr Garth Bennie

Garth joined NZDSN in January 2015 and since then has led NZDSN into a new era of closer ties with Government and across providers. Garth has a wealth of experience in and around the disability sector with 15 years at the Ministry of Education as a District Manager for Special Education.

His career began at IHC in both vocational and residential settings where he trained as a social worker and since then he has held a variety of roles coordinating, managing, researching and developing disability services and policy. He gained his PhD on disability studies particularly focussing on supported employment.

John Whaanga

John is affiliated to Ngāti Rākaipaaka, Ngāti Kahungunu and Ngāti Rongomaiwahine. In 2018, John was acknowledged in parliament for his work in successfully negotiating a $100 million Treaty of Waitangi settlement for Ngā Iwi me Ngā Hapū o Te Rohe o Te Wairoa – this was the culmination of over 30 years work. 

John began his career in the Department of Conservation in 1989 (working on Treaty of Waitangi policy and negotiations), before moving on to the Ministry of Education (Māori Education Group) in 1991. 

John originally joined the Ministry of Health in 1993, as a foundation member of the then newly-established Māori Health Directorate, Te Kete Hauora. John then spent six years working in the Ministry, culminating in management roles in both public health and Māori health (as Manager, Te Kete Hauora).

In the last six years John has undertaken a number of significant roles in tertiary education, including as: Chief Advisor Wānanga, Tertiary Education Commission; Deputy Chief Executive, Te Wānanga o Aotearoa; and Chief Operating Officer, Taratahi Institute of Agriculture.

Keriana Brooking

Keriana Brooking has been with the Ministry since 2014 in a number of senior positions, starting as Chief Advisor System Integration, and most recently as Deputy Director – Service Commissioning. When she first stepped into a senior role in health, it was as DHB Planning and Funding Manager at Tairawhiti District Health Board. When Primary Health Organisations (PHOs) first formed in 2002, she became Chief Executive Officer of Turanganui PHO. Subsequently six PHOs merged and Keriana went on to become Deputy CEO and General Manager Practice Services of the Midlands Health Network.

Keriana has whakapapa links to Ngāti Pāhauwera me Ngāti Kahungunu ki te Wairoa and is widely recognised for her dedication and commitment to improving the health of New Zealanders, backed by a high level of experience in the context of change. 

Dr Lloyd McCann

Dr Lloyd McCann brings governance, business and health sector experience to the Review panel.

He is CEO and Head of Digital Health at Mercy Radiology and Healthcare Holdings Limited and was previously Director of Medical Services and Chief Operating Officer at MercyAscot Hospitals and Mercy Radiology.

He has served on various advisory panels and has presented at health and business conferences.

Dr Maria Baker (PhD) RN (Ngāpuhi, Te Rarawa) 

Pouwhakahaere: Matua (CEO) of Te Rau Ora (formerly Te Rau Matatini). Maria is a registered nurse and brings a 20-year history in Māori Health, with a focus in mental health (adult), added to by her doctorate research in Māori experience of mental illness and mental health services.

Maria has worked for Iwi, NGO providers in rural communities, in addition to DHB roles that have relied on NGO workforces and provider delivery.

In the last decade, Maria's focus has been in workforce development, system improvements and innovations, and fostering evidence of what works for Māori.   

Robyn Shearer

Robyn comes to this role with a vast range of sector experience having been the CEO for Te Pou o te Whakaaro nui for the last ten years.

During her time Robyn has grown Te Pou to be internationally recognised for evidence based workforce programmes in mental health, addiction and disability and has created strong sector partnerships to enhance people’s lives through service improvement.

Robyn comes from a clinical background, beginning her experience with nursing and has worked in front line mental health services and leadership roles in District Health Boards.

She has also worked in the Health Research Council and Ministry of Health in workforce development, policy and leading the Mental Health Group.

Sharon Shea, MNZM

Māori Expert Advisory Group, Health and Disability System Review

Sharon is widely recognised as a leader in the field of health and Māori development strategy, Whānau Ora, outcomes framework development, quality assurance and systems design, particularly in respect to issues affecting Māori.

Board member of Auckland DHB, Northland DHB, Healthcare Applications Ltd, Alliance HealthPlus PHO.

Bachelor of Laws and a Bachelor of Arts from Auckland University. Masters in Comparative Social Policy from Oxford University (Awarded with Distinction). Sharon was recently awarded a MNZM for services to Māori health and development.

Iwi affiliations: Ngāti Ranginui, Ngāti Haua, Ngāti Hine and Ngāti Hako.