Speakers

Malcolm Dix is a Bullshift Facilitator, Executive Coach, Counsellor, Accredited PRINT Practitioner and recovering StandUp Comedian with over 20 years of experience presenting to diverse audiences across Australia.

Over the years, Malcolm has worked with almost every industry imaginable – from Health, Community Services, Education and Finance to Government Departments, Local Councils and numerous small to medium businesses and global organistations.

Malcolm’s natural energy, insight, empathy and great humour give him the flexibility to engage with a broad range of organisations.
In his younger days, Malcolm spent the best part of twenty years performing Stand-up comedy by night while working as a Youth Worker with homeless and at-risk people by day. Both those experiences enabled him to think quickly under pressure and respond effectively to whatever happens in the moment.

In recent years, Malcolm has completed Post Graduate studies in both Leadership Coaching and Counselling, which has further enhanced his understanding of how and why people do the extraordinary, delightful and sometimes bizarre things we humans tend to do.
Today, Malcolm blends all his learning and lifelong experience with the Bullshift Principles – and plenty of humour – to help people ‘Shift the Bull.’

Dianne Driscoll is a Change & Resilience Coach, Consultant, Facilitator and Speaker. A former corporate leader, with a career spanning over 25 years in technology and organisational change, she now works with corporate leaders, teams and organisations to build core capabilities in change, resilience and leadership.

Dianne is an accredited and award winning Prosci® / ADKAR Change Practitioner and certified Trauma Informed Life Coach. She is also a Senior Coach & Facilitator with Speakers Institute Corporate where she loves to “inspire great leaders”. Dianne has had the privilege to work with numerous blue-chip organisations across the globe, including Microsoft, IBM, Cisco Systems, Ernst & Young, Campbell’s Soup & Arnott’s Biscuits.

Having lived with long-term mental illness, then suffering corporate burnout, Dianne has developed a unique perspective on what is required to mobilise people through change, without sacrificing their mental health. Dianne has distilled her professional expertise and her personal learnings into capability building programs that give workplaces that ultimate competitive advantage that is so essential right now.

Known for her warmth, wit and wisdom (she is Irish after all), Dianne captivates live and virtual audiences with her dynamic delivery, interactive style and actionable insights.

Dr Alan D. Thompson is a world expert in artificial intelligence (AI), specializing in the augmentation of human intelligence, and advancing the evolution of ‘integrated AI’.

Alan provides AI consulting and advisory to intergovernmental organizations including member states of the European Union, the Commonwealth, and the World Trade Organization. Alan’s applied AI research and visualizations are featured across major international media, including citations in the University of Oxford’s debate on AI Ethics in December 2021. His 2021-2022 experiments with Leta AI and Aurora AI have been viewed over 1.5 million times.

Prior to his work in AI, Alan was a major contributor to human intelligence research and practice. As chairman for Mensa International’s gifted families committee, Alan served two consecutive terms sharing best practice among 54 countries, and his work on gifted education was referenced in the Department of Education’s High Potential policy.

Alan’s best-selling book, Bright, was made available to families at Elon Musk’s gifted school. A copy of the book will be sent to the moon aboard the Peregrine lunar lander in 2022.

Alan continues to advise intergovernmental organizations, enterprise, and international media in the fields of artificial intelligence and human intelligence, consulting to the award-winning series Decoding Genius for GE, Making Child Prodigies for ABC (with the Australian Prime Minister), 60 Minutes for Network Ten/CBS, and Child Genius for Warner Bros.

Alan completed his Bachelor of Science (Computer Science, AI, and Psychology) at Edith Cowan University, 2004; studied Gifted Education at Flinders University, 2017; became a Fellow of the Institute of Coaching affiliated with Harvard Medical School, 2017; and received his doctorate from Emerson, 2021. Alan’s dissertation was adapted into a book featuring Dr Rupert Sheldrake, Connected: Intuition and Resonance in Smart People.

Alex has been involved in Day Hospital Management both in Australia and Overseas. As the Chief Financial Officer he was responsible for the financial management of over 100 Day Hospitals in the Group.

With over 30 years of industry experience, Alex has a demonstrated history of growing and developing SME’s, local and multinational companies.

A strong Finance, Strategic and Commercial emphasis, Alex provides strong leadership and commercial acumen in all business environments.

Alex holds an MBA from Australian Graduate School of Management (UNSW/USYD), is a Fellow Certified Practising Accountant (FCPA) and is a member of the NSW Divisional Council for CPA Australia.

Andrew is a co-founder of Nexus Hospitals and was the Chief Executive of the group from 2014 – 2024. Andrew oversaw the development of Nexus into a national health care group encompassing 28 specialist surgical hospitals around Australia.

Throughout his career, Andrew has served in both executive and non-executive roles across a wide variety of industries. This has reinforced Andrew’s belief that the fundamentals of success are a clear strategy, being nimble to meet market needs, flawless execution and a relentless focus on the customer.

Andrew is a graduate member of the Australian Institute of Company Directors, a graduate of the Advanced Management Program at Harvard Business School and a member of The Executive Connection. Andrew holds a BEc from the Australian National University and is also the author of an explanatory text on private equity “In the Driver’s Seat”, published in 2013.

Oliver is a highly respected and award-winning journalist who is never backward in coming forward, hosting PERTH LIVE (3pm – 6pm Mon to Fri) the drive time program on Radio 6PR, Perth.

Oly talks to all the leading newsmakers, politicians and business leaders in the country promoting thought provoking discussion to bring about change and accountability.

Before becoming a full time talkback radio host in 2017 he spent a decade as a television news reporter for both Nine and the ABC covering some of the biggest stories in South East Asia including the shooting down of MH17, MH370 plane crash and the execution of the Bali 9 ringleaders.

A/Prof. Philip Truskett AM is a General Surgeon with an interest in Upper GI and HPB Surgery at the Prince of Wales Hospital, Sydney, where he is a senior staff specialist.

A/Prof. Truskett was appointed as Chairperson of Day Hospitals Australia in March 2019 and has taken an active role in both the Royal Australasian College of Surgeons and General Surgeons Australia. He is a past President of General Surgeons Australia. As a College Councillor he has served on many College committees. He was the Chair of the Board of Surgical Education and Training and then served as Censor in Chief. He is the immediate past President of the Royal Australasian College of Surgeons. He is the current Chair of the Council of Presidents of Medical Colleges (CPMC).

He is a proud patron of the Australian Indigenous Doctors Association and a committed advocate for equity of access for indigenous Australians to medical schools and specialty training.

Founder and Sole Director of Infection Prevention Australia, Michelle is a Registered Nurse who offers her clients over 20 years of Infection Control experience.

Having practiced in the public, private and aged care sector, Michelle is also consulted to private dialysis clinics and specialist day surgery centres.

Simon started his career as a factory engineer and product design engineer, including for diagnostic and surgical devices. From here he transitioned into marketing and management, picking up commercial experience and qualifications. Following this he was employed to lead hospital development projects in some interesting locations outside Australia, and developed an interest in the commercial and operational aspects of hospitals and the healthcare system in general. Since 2015 he has consulted to a wide range of public, private and non-hospital healthcare providers.

Luke is an experienced senior executive and qualified lawyer with over 20 years’ experience in the Australian private health insurance (PHI) sector across a variety of roles including in commercial partnerships, counter fraud, managing payment integrity functions, corporate governance and company secretariat. Luke has post graduate qualification in investigations, holds a Master of Leadership, is a graduate of the Australian Institute of Company Directors and is a qualified PROSCI Change Practitioner. He is currently the General Manager, Hospital & Medical Partnerships with Bupa and outside work, is a non-executive director on two charity boards supporting people living with disability

Jane Griffiths (BAppSc (Dist), MCNA, AIMM, RN) was appointed to the inaugural CEO position of Day Hospitals Australia on 1 July 2014. Previously she was the Day Hospitals Australia President from 2010 to 30 June 2014 and served on the Board of Directors and the former Management Committee of Day Hospitals Australia since 2008.

Prior to this, she was the Business Manager/DON of Perth Dermatology Clinic and conducted JG Consulting. Prior to that Jane was the Business Manager of The Women’s Clinic Day Hospital for 7½ years, McCourt Street Day Surgery for 7 years and Nursing Coordinator, Perioperative Services at St John of God Hospital Subiaco for 10 years. Whilst a Senior Nursing Executive at St John of God, Subiaco Jane was sent on 7-week sabbatical to the USA in 1997 to explore latest trends in same day surgery visiting California, Illinois, & Pennsylvania.

In 2021 Jane was appointed as one of the three Australian representatives on the International Association of Ambulatory Surgery (IAAS) General Assembly.

Jane is passionate about same day surgery and care.

Matt has been involved in the hospital industry for over 25 years and is currently the CEO of PresMed Australia – a day hospital group with facilities across NSW, ACT and Tasmania. Matt is passionate about person-centered care and the use of values to drive the culture of an organisation. Promoting empathy to ensure the best experience for patients and staff. In 2019 he was one of the first Australians invited to speak at the worlds leading Patient Experience Summit held by Cleveland Clinic in Ohio.

Matt’s leadership and partnering with his team has been acknowledged in previous roles with his hospitals winning awards such as Outstanding Employer of Choice, Excellence in Innovation and Business of the Year. In 2019 Matt was NSW Business Leader of the Year by the NSW Business Chamber, and named an Outstanding Employee for Luye Medical, an organisation of more than 7,000 employees.

Matt started his career in health as a registered nurse working in Newcastle and the UK. On returning to Australia, Matt worked in Intensive Care Units across Sydney in both clinical and management roles, before moving into executive roles in the public and private sectors.

Fiona has worked in a range of roles over 25 years in the Australian healthcare system, including 12 years working as a hospital leader in a variety of settings including day surgery, mental health, and acute medical surgical hospitals.

In her role as Operations Director for the Southern Region with Nexus Hospitals, Fiona shares her wealth of operational and leadership experience to support her team through the challenges that all hospital leaders experience. Her commitment to excellence in patient care drives Fiona’s passion to continue innovating to introduce new models of care that benefit patients and the health system overall.

As the Commonwealth Chief Nursing and Midwifery Officer Alison provides high-level strategic policy advice to the Australian Government and the Executive and staff within the Department of Health and Aged care on nursing, midwifery, health system reform, health workforce, regulation and education.

Alison has been a Registered Nurse for more than 40 years, she has a Critical Care Nursing Certificate, a Bachelor Degree in Education, and a Master of Business Administration. Alison has held senior executive roles in government and health services within Victoria including the Chief Nursing and Midwifery Officer, Director of Quality, Safety and Patient Experience and Director of Health Emergency Management.

She has received a number of awards including a Distinguished Alumni Award from Latrobe University in 2024, a Public Service Medal in June 2021 for outstanding public service to driving the Government’s national health response priorities during the COVID-19 pandemic, particularly to infection prevention measures, a National Emergency Medal in recognition of service following the 2009 Victorian Bushfires and, in 2021, a Humanitarian Overseas Medal.

Gail is an academic and nurse researcher within the School of Nursing and Midwifery at the University of Notre Dame Fremantle. She was the inaugural winner of the Reginald ‘Babe’ Norman PhD scholarship awarded to an applicant who demonstrates high academic ability and original targeted research which addresses significant health issues. In addition, Gail is Board Chair of Fremantle Women’s Health Centre, a not-for profit which provides medical, nursing and counselling services for women and a non-executive director of Amana Living one of Western Australia’s largest not-for-profit providers of care and services for older people.

Cheryle Royle is an experienced hospital CEO with a passion for quality in healthcare and clinical governance. Having started her career a registered Nurse & Midwife, Cheryle progressed to her first role as CEO of a hospital within Australian Hospital Care (AHC) in 1995. Since then, she has managed a number of hospitals in both Victoria and Queensland, retiring from her role as CEO St Vincent’s Private Hospital Brisbane in 2017.

Cheryle was awarded a Telstra Businesswomen’s Award in Victoria (1998) and is currently a Judge for Testra in their Best of Business Awards. She is also a current member of the Australasian Institute of Clinical Governance (AICG) where her desire to drive clinical improvement continues.

She served on the Australian Commission for Safety & Quality for several years until her retirement and has been a Surveyor with the Australian Council for Healthcare Standards in the past. Throughout her career, Cheryle focussed her management skills on the clinical arena where she believes the greatest opportunity for improvement in not only clinical care but in overall business improvement.

Over her career, Cheryle has served on a number of Boards across both the public and private sectors and continues to do so.

Richard has over 30 years of senior executive experience in the public, for profit and not for profit private hospital sectors in Australia, plus experience as a senior executive with one of the major Australian private health insurers. He also spent time as PwC’s lead partner for digital health in Australia and SE Asia.

He is a past President of the Australian Private Hospitals Association, and past deputy Chair of the HESTA superannuation fund.

Richard oversaw the successful implementation of Australia’s first fully integrated digital hospital in Hervey Bay, as group CEO of UnitingCare Health in 2014. In 2016, he was asked to be the startup CEO of the newly established Australian Digital Health Agency – putting into practice one of his recommendations from a landmark review he was asked to lead in 2013 for the Federal Government on digital health in Australia.

He currently chairs the CSIRO’s eHealth Research Centre, which has a national footprint and has successfully commercialized a number of innovative digital health initiatives.