Governance

Professor Mary Foley AM

CCRI Independent Chair
Managing Director
Telstra Health

Professor Mary Foley has a distinguished career in the health sector, holding leadership positions in state government and national roles, the private sector and not-for-profit organisations.  In 2017 Mary was appointed Managing Director of Telstra Health, Australia’s largest Australian owned digital health company which also includes Dr Foster in the UK. Telstra Health is a subsidiary of Telstra Corporation, Australia’s largest telco.

Prior to joining Telstra Health, Mary was Director General and Secretary of NSW Health for a five-year term. She has also previously held roles as National Health Practice Leader for PwC Australia, Chief Executive of St Vincent’s and Mater Health Sydney, and a senior executive of a major listed Australian healthcare company. 

She is an Adjunct Professor at the School of Science and Health at Western Sydney University, a Board Director of Research Australia, and Chair of the Central Coast Research Institute. Mary has previously served as Deputy Chancellor of Western Sydney University, a Director of the National eHealth Transition Authority, Deputy Chair of the Australian Health Ministers’ Advisory Council, Board Director of the Garvan Institute of Medical Research and Board President of the YWCA NSW. 

Mary was appointed as a Member of the Order of Australia for her contribution to public administration in health and education (2016), received the Centenary Medal from the Federal Government for her business leadership in the private sector, and she is a former Telstra NSW Business Woman of the Year.

Scott McLachlan

CCRI Board Member
Chief Executive
Central Coast Local Health District.

Scott has held leadership roles in health in both private and public health systems spanning across two decades. Having been raised in country NSW he understands the highly complex landscape of the health care environment and the unique challenges of health care delivery in Australia. He is passionately motivated every day to head up improving health outcomes for the community through authentic engagement, strong collaboration with clinicians, strategic partnerships and fostering and leading innovation.

Professor Zee Upton

CCRI Board Member
Deputy Vice-Chancellor - Research & Innovation
University of Newcastle

Professor Zee Upton, a biochemist by training, is the Pro Vice-Chancellor of the College of Health, Medicine and Wellbeing at the University of Newcastle. She has a significant record of research in skin, wounds and tissue repair, spanning many disciplinary boundaries.

Prior to joining the University, she spent six years in Singapore where she was the Executive Director of the Skin Research Institute of Singapore (SRIS), a tripartite research initiative between Nanyang Technological University, the National Health Group and the Agency for Science, Technology and Research (A*STAR), as well as the Executive Director of A*STAR Institute of Medical Biology. In these roles she facilitated extensive collaboration with industry, many via the Wound Care Innovation for the Tropics Industry Alignment Pre-Positioning Program that she also established and led.

Preceding this, Professor Upton spent 15 years at the Queensland University of Technology where she held senior management and leadership positions, as well as established the Wound Management Innovation Cooperative Research Centre, plus formed a start-up that ultimately listed on the Australian Stock Exchange.

Fiona Wilkinson

CCRI Board Member
District Director, Quality, Strategy and Improvement
Central Coast Local Health District

Fiona Wilkinson has more than 30 years’ experience with North Sydney Local Health District (NSLHD) and Central Coast Local Health District (CCLHD). Most recently, she has been a driving force behind reshaping CCLHD’s patient services, facilities and governance frameworks. 

In her previous role as Manager of CCLHD Redevelopment Program, Fiona oversaw the major transformations of Gosford and Wyong hospital. Fiona has continued this function within her role as District Director Quality, Strategy and Improvement, overseeing the completion of Wyong Hospital Redevelopment and the Central Coast Clinical School and Research Institute. 

Fiona has also led safety and quality improvements for our organisation in other previous roles including: Manager Clinical Governance, and Manager Clinical Redesign.

Fiona has a clinical background. She began her career as a registered nurse and went on to hold many senior nursing roles. Fiona has completed tertiary studies including a Bachelor of Nursing and Master of Business & Technology – from the University of New South Wales.

In her role as CCLHD’s District Director Quality, Strategy and Improvement, Fiona is responsible for leading, coordinating and managing the patient safety and quality, improvement, innovation, business intelligence and performance reporting, research, major capital builds and strategic development functions of CCLHD, providing advice to the Chief Executive, Board and leadership teams.

Her directorate drives and enables the delivery of key initiatives concerning strategic and operational planning by developing and supporting improvement, research and innovative service provision to deliver high quality, safe patient care, for the best possible value.

Professor Elizabeth Sullivan

CCRI Board Member
Pro Vice-Chancellor - College of Health, Medicine and Wellbeing
University of Newcastle

Professor Elizabeth Sullivan joined the University of Newcastle in 2019. She is an experienced University executive leader, public health physician and epidemiologist.  

Professor Sullivan is currently Deputy Vice-Chancellor Research and Innovation (Acting) at The University of Newcastle. Prior to this she led the Faculty of Health and Medicine through the COVID-19 epidemic in 2020 and its change process to the College of Health, Medicine and Wellbeing. Professor Sullivan is the incoming Executive Dean Central Coast. 

Prior to joining The University of Newcastle, Professor Sullivan was Assistant Deputy Vice-Chancellor Research at the University of Technology Sydney where she led it to its inaugural Athena Swan bronze award. She was also the long-term Director of the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare National Perinatal Statistics and Epidemiology Unit at The University of New South Wales, leading national research efforts in maternal and perinatal health. Professor Sullivan currently leads a program of justice health research with a focus on the criminalisation of poverty and is the Research Lead Custodial Health for the Justice Health and Forensic Mental Health Network, NSW Health. She has been awarded more than 21 million in research funding, has authored over 250 peer-reviewed publications/reports and supervised twelve PhD completions. She is a former Council member of the NHMRC Council (2015-2018). She is a fellow of the Australasian Faculty of Public Health Medicine, and a current member of the Australasian Faculty of Public Health Medicine Council; and member of the Fellowship Committee, Royal Australasian College of Physicians. 

Professor Sullivan is co-executive lead for Our Indigenous Commitment for Looking Ahead Strategic Plan; and an active advocate for gender equity, diversity and inclusion within education and research. She is passionate about development and mentorship of the next generation of national leaders in STEMM.