The Hon Christopher Pyne (Chair)
Jane Schuller (Deputy Chair)
Dr Jessica Gallagher
Shaun Tatipata
Shaun Tatipata is Narrindjeri/Wuthathi with family connections in the Torres Strait, Cape York and South Australia. Shaun’s professional career has been devoted to advancing the health and well-being of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people.
Having trained as an Aboriginal Health Worker (AHW), Shaun gained extensive experience in delivering Primary Health Care and designing and implementing outreach programs in communities.
It was through these roles that Shaun developed a passion for preserving and restoring sight, and set out to specialise in delivering culturally safe eye care services combining the unique skill set and cultural brokerage role of an AHW with the clinical expertise of Optometrists and Ophthalmologists.
Jaki Adams
Jaki was born and raised in Darwin (Larrakia Nation) and is of both Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander descent, with ancestral links to the Yadhaigana and Wuthathi people of Cape York Peninsula, traditional family ties with the Gurindji people, and extended family relationships with the people of the Torres Straits and Warlpiri.
Jaki has 25 years experience in government and non-government/international development sectors.
As Director Program Implementation – Oceania, Jaki oversees eye health programming, social justice and advocacy for The Fred Hollows Foundation’s Indigenous Australia Program, as well as programming and stakeholder management across the Pacific, Timor Leste, Philippines and Indonesia.
A/Prof Heather Mack AM
Clinical Associate Professor Heather Mack (B Med Sc, MBBS, MBA, PhD, FRANZCO, GAICD) is an Australian ophthalmologist.
She has held senior leadership positions with the Royal Australian College of Ophthalmologists over the past 17 years, including President (2018-2020).
She works in her private ophthalmology practice, and has experience in clinical research in academia, with industry and with government.
She has been involved in 19 clinical trials (Phases 1-3), and is on the Advisory Board for voretigene neparvovec gene therapy in Australia. Heather has been an invited speaker at over 20 times and has over 47 peer reviewed publications.
Clin A/Prof Nitin Verma
Nitin is Past President of the Royal Australian and New Zealand College of Ophthalmologists (RANZCO) and longtime Board Director. He is also a Director of the Macular Disease Foundation of Australia.
He has been active both locally and internationally through my involvement in establishing the eye health program in Timor L’este.
During his tenure as RANZCO President he oversaw the implementation of the Vision 2030 and beyond plan, which aims to enhance equitable service provision across Australia and develop and maintain a sustainable ophthalmology workforce, with the goal of working towards eliminating avoidable blindness in Australia.
Dr Kate Reid
Dr Reid has been an ophthalmologist for more than 30 years, specialising in neuro-ophthalmology over the last decade.
Dr Reid was in solo private practice in Sydney for seven years, before being appointed as a Senior Staff specialist in Ophthalmology at Canberra Hospital.
She spent 15 years at the Hospital, including five years as Director of Ophthalmology, and in that role was instrumental in creating the Hospital’s Eye Clinic.
Dr Reid is highly experienced in the management of all neuro-ophthalmology conditions affecting sight. She has a particular interest in the commonest neuro-ophthalmic condition, idiopathic intracranial hypertension (IIH), and has published research internationally.
Fiona Woods
Fiona has also held positions with the National Women’s Branch, has chaired the National Policy Council and led the development of BCA’s Expectations of Service Providers, which sets out what we believe people who are blind and vision impaired should expect when they access services designed for them. In addition, Fiona was a graduate of the first Executive Leadership Program.