How long have you been with VAHI and what was your background before working here?
I started at VAHI at the beginning of this year so I’m still a newbie. I’ve worked at the Department of Health since 2007 and, before VAHI was created, I was involved in various data, reporting and analytics functions, including many that now sit within VAHI.
Prior to the department, I worked in Sydney as a consultant, at the ANU as a demographer, at the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare as Head of the Housing and Homelessness unit, and (very early in my career) at the Australian Institute of Family Studies and La Trobe University as a research assistant and IT support officer. I’ve also had short stints at Ernst and Young and the Australian Public Service.
What is your role and how does your work area contribute to VAHI’s success?
At the moment, my teams are engaged in managing the Victorian Healthcare Experience Survey Program; implementing the new Victorian Health Incident Management System and Minimum Dataset; facilitating the statewide roll-out of the Care Opinion patient feedback platform; and leading the department’s engagement with various Clinical Quality Registries.
We are also investigating how improved primary–acute care integration could contribute to better outcomes for cardiac patients, supporting the surgery reform agenda and meeting our accountability requirements through public reporting of health system performance.
What do you think your job will look like in five years’ time?
I’m not sure I could predict what my job will be like in six months’ time, let alone five years – but I suspect (hope) it will be much the same with better tech, more comprehensive and timely data, better measurement of things that really matter, and a significant reduction in light bulb-to-insight turnaround time.
What do you enjoy most about working at VAHI?
Working at VAHI is like coming home for me. I love learning from and working with like-minded people who are passionate about using data and analytics to make a real difference to our communities and the people we serve.