Executive team

Peter was appointed as Health Service Chief Executive in October 2021. Previous to that Peter was with Darling Downs Health Service in 2 roles. Initially as Director of Medical Services from 2009 and then as Executive Director of Medical Services until becoming Chief Executive there in January 2016.

Peter is a Fellow of the Royal Australasian College of Medical Administrators and has a Masters of Business Administration from Otago University. He is also a Graduate of the Australian Institute of Company Directors.

He has a background in general management, previously working in the following roles:

• general manager of a health software company
• regional manager for a not-for-profit private hospital group in Auckland, New Zealand.

He has been a doctor for nearly 30 years and has worked in hospital and general practice roles in South Africa and the United Kingdom.

Joanne was appointed Chief Operating Officer in December 2021. She has broad experience in leadership and management roles, including an extensive knowledge of strategic and operational leadership to provide high-quality, safe, sustainable, patient and family-centred care. Joanne has a varied background in different organisations which includes tertiary centre work in metropolitan Melbourne and Perth coupled with regional, rural and remote experience in Queensland.

Joanne holds a Bachelor of Nursing and is a registered nurse with post graduate qualifications including a Graduate Certificate in Critical Care Nursing, Graduate Certificate in Transfusion Practice, Graduate Certificate in Consumer and Community Engagement, and a Masters of Nursing. Other notable achievements  include graduating from the Australian Institute of Company Directors, and publishing in the British Journal of Haematology.

Joanne has held numerous leadership positions, with her most recent role as Executive Director Rural at Darling Downs Hospital and Health Service. In this role Joanne was accountable for the Rural Division which comprised 23 facilities including three medium sized regional hub hospitals, 12 acute rural hospitals, 3 multipurpose health services, 3 outpatient clinics, 6 residential aged care facilities and 2 primary practice clinics across an area of 90,000 km².

Joanne is passionate about healthcare and she uses values-based leadership to build integrated service models to ultimately improve patient and community outcomes.

Julian joined Sunshine Coast Health in January 2022 as Executive Director, Legal and Governance. He has more than 20 years’ experience in corporate law and governance in both Australia and New Zealand.

Julian studied a Bachelor of Arts (1985) at the University of Natal in South Africa and law at the University of the Witwatersrand (1998). He was admitted as a Solicitor in South Africa (1992), as a Barrister and Solicitor in New Zealand (2003) and as a Solicitor in Australia (2012).

He excels in the provision of inhouse legal services, risk management, legislative compliance and corporate governance.

Before joining Sunshine Coast Health, Julian worked as:

• Executive Director Legal and Governance Darling Downs Health
• Legal Counsel at Southland and Otago District Health Boards in New Zealand.

Julian is a member of the Queensland Law Society, and has interests in leadership development, culture change in the workplace. Outside of the office enjoys sport, music and fishing.

Karen joined SCHHS in 2017 as the Manager of Finance and Business Analysis. In late 2021 she acted as the Financial Controller and Chief Financial Officer (CFO) for the health service.

Prior to joining SCHHS, Karen worked at PwC providing consulting services to a range clients to ensure the financial sustainability of organisations. She led engagements that included the development and implementation of organisational design and transformation projects, funding model reviews, cost saving projects, benchmarking and finance shared services review.

In her earlier career, Karen held roles as a management accountant for federal government departments and worked overseas at a multi-national financial services company.

The transition between management accounting and management consulting has provided Karen with a holistic understanding of organisational challenges, and how to use a financial and analytical foundation to shape and execute business transformation programs.

Karen volunteers as Treasurer for a local lifesaving club and has volunteered for CPA as an elected member of the CPA divisional council (ACT).

She is a qualified CPA with a Graduate Certificate in Professional Accounting and Bachelor of Commerce (Banking and Finance), receiving the Australian Institute of Banking and Finance award for outstanding academic performance.

Silven has recently joined SCHHS in January 2022 as the Executive Director, Workforce.  Prior to this Silven worked as the Senior Director, People Safety and Performance Unit and Executive Director, Employment Relations, Human Resources Branch, Corporate Services Division with Queensland Health for 5 years.  Silven has also worked as the General Manager, Human Resources for Roads and Maritime Services in New South Wales.

Silven has more than 20 years’ experience working in senior human resources and corporate professional roles with demonstrated experience managing large corporate functions through periods of significant change and transformation in large and complex environments.

Silven has a strong working knowledge of state and federal industrial instruments including culture and engagement, transformation and change, negotiations of awards and enterprise agreements and organisational development.

Silven has strong stakeholder management skills with an ability to work across all levels of an organisation and able to drive the people agenda at an executive level.

Silven has a Graduate Certificate in Public Sector Management and has completed the Australian Institute of Company Directors course.

Marlene commenced as the Executive Director of Medical Services in March 2022. She completed a Bachelor of Science (2004) and MBBS at The University of Queensland (2008), and went on to obtain her Fellowship with the Royal Australian College of General Practitioners (2014) in Victoria. She holds a Master of Health Administration from Monash University (2021).

Lisa has had a long career in health leadership roles including mental health nursing, facility management, and as Executive Director of Nursing and Midwifery. She is committed not only to the health and wellbeing of the people in our communities but also in growing support for nurses and midwives to professionally succeed.

Lisa is focussed on investing in the next generation of nurses and midwives, and further promoting the importance of evidence-based practices, training, and development for sustainable services. She believes that being a nurse or midwife is more than just a profession – it’s a lifelong journey.

Gemma started in the role of Executive Director Allied Health in September 2017. She has worked for Sunshine Coast Health since 2005 in a variety of clinical and leadership roles.

Gemma has extensive experience in allied health leadership, starting her career in New Zealand in 1991 and then in Australia from 2004.

She completed a Masters in Human Movement Science at the University of Wollongong in 1995. She recently completed a doctoral program through the University Sunshine Coast completing research on allied health leadership.

Andrew has a technical background in Electrical engineering systems with further studies in asset management. Andrew started with Queensland Health in 2014 and has worked across several Hospital and Health Services. He commenced with Sunshine Coast Hospital and Health Service (SCHHS) in 2016 as the Director of Assets and Infrastructure after working on the Sunshine Coast University Hospital (SCUH) development as part of the State engineering compliance team.

Andrew has worked across multiple government departments including Police, Education and Public Works in the fields of project, programs and asset management. Prior to joining the public sector Andrew worked for several multinational companies across States and Territories of Australia, in the B2B sector managing commercial supply and service contracts to companies such as BHP, Comalco and Rio Tinto.

Jake has 20 years’ experience in ICT across health, banking and consulting industry sectors in leadership and executive roles.  After graduating with a BSc Computer Studies, he began his career in the banking sector leading major ICT transformation initiatives before migrating from England and joining Queensland Health. Within Queensland Health Jake has held a number of leadership roles across the new hospitals program, delivering integrated biomedical and clinical systems at the Gold Coast University Hospital, Queensland Children’s Hospital and Sunshine Coast University Hospital.

More recently Jake led the technical delivery of the integrated electronic Medical Record deployment at the Sunshine Coast Hospital and Health Service and has worked closely with clinical leads in the development of the new health service Digital Health strategy.

Jake has expertise in ICT and Digital Health strategy, planning and delivery in complex health services and is passionate about helping staff improve health outcomes for our community and consumers.

I would like to acknowledge the Traditional Custodian, the Kabi Kabi (Gubbi Gubbi) people and Jinibara people, pay my respect elders past present and future, and recognise the strength and resilience that Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people and their ancestors have displayed in laying strong foundations for generations that follow.

Sharon is a proud Aboriginal woman and comes from a long line of strong Aboriginal women born in Central West Queensland and is connected to the Iningai people. Her father was born in Linaskea, Northern Ireland and arrived in Australia in 1949.

Sharon has been working in Queensland Health for over 20 years, prior to this she worked in the Community Control sector. Sharon has extensive knowledge on leadership, community and health service delivery and has been integral in building strong relationships with various stakeholders and community.

She is a strong advocate for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people, she is a key contributor to the design and implementation of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Health services across Sunshine Coast HHS.