I have had the pleasure of working In infection Prevention and Control (IPC) for 18 years. I have implemented IPC programs in several Western Australian (WA) public and private health sectors over this time. I have been employed as the Coordinator of Nursing (SRN7) at the Child and Adolescent Health Service (CAHS) since 2021. This is Western Australia’s only tertiary paediatric and neonatal service and has extensive community-based sites requiring adaptability of IPC principles. I lead an IPC team of 7.9FTE and chair the service’s Standard 3 Committee. My experience working for the Western Australian Department of Health, Public Health Emergency Operations Centre (PHOEC) during COVID-19, deepened my understanding of the need for IPC expertise in non-acute health services such as aged care, disability services and in non-health settings defense, police and maritime industry and developed my skills to adapt IPC principles across these settings. I am passionate about growing the standing of IPC at a national, state and institutional levels. I contribute to the WA IPC agenda as a member of the WA IPC Advisory Group. The committee was established by Rebecca McCann and I during COVID-19, which has continued to be of importance to this day. I was actively involved in the Infection Control Association of Western Australia Inc. (ICAWA) (2006 – 2011), over which time I held positions of Treasurer and President and supported the state transition to ACIPC. In 2022, I was invited to contribute to ACIPC strategic planning workshops following the November conference. I am an establishing member of the 2024 ACIPC Western Australian Special Interest Group (WASIG). I am passionate about building strong IPC teams and IPC professionals and as such participate as a mentor in 2024 ACIPC Mentor program, and our 2022 and 202 CAHS Nursing Mentor program.
Election Statement
During my 18 years working as an infection prevention and control (IPC) practitioner, I have been passionate about improving the voice of Australasian IPC professionals at national, state and institutional levels. As a Director of ACIPC I would continue to foster and strengthen relationships with national and state partners and continue to develop the recognition of AICPC as the lead organization on IPC matters. I will continue to support ACIPC to develop IPC capacity of members and non-members and to strengthen our organizational membership across disciplines. As a director, I will ensure we have transparency and accountability to all of it’s members.