Prevention in Practice Summit

Shane Hamilton, Deputy Secretary Aboriginal Affairs, Department of Premier and Cabinet, NSW Government

Shane Hamilton is a Wakka Wakka and Bundjalung man from Queensland. He is a respected leader with executive experience across housing, corrections and professional services sectors in government, non-government, and corporate enterprises. Shane is the current Deputy Secretary Aboriginal Affairs at Department of Premier and Cabinet in the NSW Government. He came to the role after almost four years in Management consulting with PwC’s Indigenous Consulting and Inside Policy, where he was the Managing Director.

Professor Daryl Higgins, Director of the Institute of Child Protection Studies at Australian Catholic University

Professor Daryl Higgins is the Director of the Institute of Child Protection Studies at Australian Catholic University. For 30 years, he has been researching child abuse prevalence, impacts, and prevention; public health approaches to protecting children; and child-safe organisational strategies. He is one of the Chief Investigator on a National Health and Medical Research Council grant to conduct the first national study of the prevalence in Australia of child abuse and neglect, and its health outcomes – the Australian Child Maltreatment Study (ACMS).

Samara Shehata, Acting Manager for LGBTQ+ Health Equity at ACON

Samara Shehata is the current Acting Manager for LGBTQ+ Health Equity at ACON, she has worked alongside many fierce community leaders and advocates for the past 10 years to improve the health and wellbeing for all people in the LGBTQ+ community across NSW. She is informed by her cross-disciplinary background as an artist, art therapist, international sex worker rights advocate and program manager. Samara is a queer woman of colour who has lived experience of suicide and mental health. She is passionate about community led and designed projects that centre self-determination, community care and social transformative justice.

Associate Professor Sarah Wayland, Senior Research Fellow Manna Institute, Discipline Lead, Social Work, University of New England

Associate Professor Sarah Wayland is a Social Work academic researcher who has devoted much of her career to exploring the lived experience of suicide and having a family member or friend go missing. Her role in the Manna Institute is focussed on the emerging health workforce, and ensuring more regional voices in their health research.

Her landmark work in developing frameworks to enhance communities of practice to better respond to trauma, distress and complex mental health has been evidenced by more than 40 peer-reviewed publications. Its unique knowledge translation focus allows for the workforce to readily access research outcomes.

Greg Jennings, Chief Engagement Officer, Beyond Blue

Greg Jennings is the Chief Engagement Officer at Beyond Blue. He’s responsible for helping more people to feel connected and for leading and influencing positive system and social change. Beyond Blue is an independent, not-for-profit mental health organisation that works with the community to improve mental health and make it easier for people to feel better earlier, get well and stay well. Greg is passionate about building capability to promote positive mental health, prevent ill-health, and better support those experiencing a mental health condition.

Adjunct Associate Professor Robyn Mildon, Chief Executive Officer, Centre for Evidence and Implementation

Associate Professor Robyn Mildon, is an internationally recognised figure in the field of research translation and implementation science and program and policy evaluations in health, education and human services. She is the Founding Chief Executive Officer of the Centre for Evidence and Implementation (CEI), a global social purpose organisation whose work now spans across eight countries. She is an Adjunct Associate Professor at Monash University, a Visiting Professor at the Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine, National University of Singapore, Co-Director of the recently established Behavioural and Implementation Science Interventions (BISI), National University of Singapore, and Chair of the Evidence and Implementation Summit 2023.

Carolyn Nikoloski, Chief Executive Officer, Mental Health Australia

Carolyn Nikoloski is the Chief Executive Officer of Mental Health Australia. Carolyn has more than 15 years’ experience in the mental health sector, having held the positions of Chief Strategy Officer and Interim Chief Experience Officer at Beyond Blue, and serves as a Director of national health promotion charity, Prevention United. Carolyn has a strong reputation of leading others through adaptive leadership challenges, transformations and change. She has significant experience in strategy development and execution, policy development and reform, and service delivery. She has a track record of developing high performing teams, and stabilising teams working through change. She is committed to improving mental health and wellbeing, and reducing social and economic disadvantage.

Cecelia Gore, Acting Deputy Chief Executive, NT Health

Cecelia Gore is a highly accomplished healthcare executive with an impressive track record of leadership and strategic planning. Cecelia is currently the Acting Deputy Chief Executive Sector and System Leadership for NT Health, overseeing the Mental Health, Alcohol and Other Drugs (AOD), and Suicide Prevention sectors for five years.

Cecelia has been responsible for driving the strategic policy and planning agenda in these critical areas of healthcare within the Northern Territory. Her responsibilities included policy and legislative development, fostering community engagement, spearheading services development and commissioning, and executing cross-agency work focused on alcohol policy reforms. Through her career she has held leadership positions in government and non-government organisations, including her role as Director of Harm Minimisation, where she managed initiatives to reduce harm associated with alcohol consumption in remote Aboriginal communities. With over two decades of experience in healthcare leadership and a strong commitment to improving the systems which deliver mental health, addiction services, and suicide prevention outcomes, Cecelia has consistently demonstrated her ability to drive meaningful change and innovation within the healthcare sector.

David Burroughs, Chief Mental Health Officer, Westpac Group

David Burroughs, Chief Mental Health Officer at Westpac and SafeWork NSW Mentally Healthy Workplaces Ambassador, has been working internationally in the area of workplace mental health for over 20 years. As a workplace psychologist, David collaborates with leading researchers and practitioners across workplace culture and behaviour, psychosocial risk management, and integrated approaches to Psychological Health and Safety. Outside of Westpac, David is Principal Psychologist and Director of Australian Psychological Services, a specialist psychological health and safety company advising and supporting several of Australia’s largest and most complex organisations from Board through to operational levels.

Monica Kelly, Executive Director of the Prevention, Equity and First People’s Branch of the Mental Health and Wellbeing Division in the Victorian Department of Health

Monica Kelly is Victoria’s first Mental Health and Wellbeing Promotion Adviser, commencing in the role in June 2022. She is also the Executive Director of the Prevention, Equity and First People’s Branch of the Mental Health and Wellbeing Division in the Victorian Department of Health.

She has worked as an Executive in Public Health, Primary Care and Human Services for many years in Victoria and previously in the Northern Territory.
Monica’s areas of expertise are health inequities, public health and health promotion, particularly with marginalised communities. Monica also brings lived and living experience of the mental health system and of intellectual disability and neurodiversity as a carer.

Emily Fuller, Social Impact Manager, Future Generation Global

Emily is the Social Impact Manager for the Future Generation companies, Australia’s first listed investment companies to deliver both financial and social returns. Emily’s experience in the private and not-for-profit sector spans communications, research and strategy, international development and philanthropy. She spent 10 years as foundation manager of the Vincent Fairfax Family Foundation prior to joining Future Generation in 2020. Emily is a graduate of the Australian Institute of Company Directors. She is a member of the Investment Committee of Social Enterprise Finance Australia (SEFA) and a director of SEFA Partnerships and Mundango Abroad, a private ancillary fund grantmaking in Papua New Guinea.

Melanie Clark, Lived Experience Advisory Group Member, Everymind

Mel is a member of Everymind's Lived Experience Advisory Group. Mel’s passion for suicide prevention is grounded in her lived experience of caring for her brother and acting as his advocate in interactions with health services. Alongside the heartache and frustration, Mel found a source of hope in the use of her experiences as a means to drive real change. Mel has actively advocated for families as a Family Carer Representative in NSW, Australia. She has worked in the community directly alongside diverse groups, including children and young people, parents and caregivers, victims, offenders, Police and other frontline responders. She aims to reduce harm and promote wellness and connection. Mel draws upon wisdom from her lived experience to inform, collaborate, and educate in the mental health and suicide prevention sectors. The principles of co-design and family-inclusive practice are central to her work, and she believes that early intervention and prevention are the keys to timely recovery.