Board & Management

Dr Robin Williams is a General Practitioner and hospital Visiting Medical Officer at Molong and Yeoval.

Having spent a year in Australia as a doctor at Dubbo Base Hospital in 1985/86, before returning to his home in Wales, life as a doctor in rural NSW beckoned and Dr Williams emigrated to Australia in 1997, settling as a General Practitioner in Gulgong.

Dr Williams was Chairman of the Dubbo/Plains Division of General Practice from 2000 to 2016. He has also served as a Director and past Chair of the Rural Doctors Network. Dr Williams was the Chair of the Western NSW Local Health District Board until his term finished at the end of 2016, and was also a member of the NSW Ministerial Advisory Committee on Rural Health. He has been a General Practitioner VMO at Molong Health Service and Yeoval UPA since 2007. Dr Williams is also currently a Clinical Lecturer, General Practice, School of Rural Health, University of Sydney, providing placements in General Practice for undergraduates, and a member of the Charles Sturt University Council.

Cathy has career long experience in the Health Industry, much of this being spent in Primary Health Care. Cathy is a Registered Nurse and Certified Practice Manager, having managed both general (multi-disciplinary) and specialist practices. Cathy is the Director of Health Programs, University of New England Partnerships. Other roles include accreditation surveyor and Practice Management Advisor to the NSW Australian Medical Association. Cathy consults Nationally to both General and Specialist Practices, is a Fellow of AAPM, and is immediate past National President.

Cathy is currently Executive Manager, Advocacy and Health Workforce, Australasian College of Dermatologists and as a member of the Department of Health Primary Health Reform Steering Group and the Practice Management Advisory Group, Cathy is a firm believer that Practice Managers are key in the development and delivery of strong systems of leadership and management enabling the delivery of quality care in the Australian Primary Health Sector.

Ms Melina Saunders is a proud Wiradjuri and Gunditjmara woman who is passionate about empowering Aboriginal people to build capacity in their own communities.  As a consultant at KPMG Ms Saunders specialises in providing core governance, operations and advisory services for Government projects working with Aboriginal organisations and draws on her extensive experience in facilitating workshops and stakeholder engagement to achieve this. Ms Saunders has spent her career working in Aboriginal organisations, such as the Australian Indigenous Mentoring Experience (AIME) and the Wirrpanda foundation, helping them to transform into strong and effective institutions to the benefit of the community. She is also a current member of the Netball Australia RAP working group.

Mr Shaun McDonagh has held Chief Executive Officer, Executive Director and Company Secretary roles with complex service organisations across Australia including with the Australian Council of Deans of Health Sciences. His industry experience includes education, training, media, health, disability and community services, employment services, financial services, construction, and property development.

Mr McDonagh possesses skills in marketing, communications, governance, media, business development, government, strategy, and analysis. He has board experience with health, disability support, employment services and financial services through various board roles nationally including at Ostara Australia, Board Chair at are-able Ltd and Independent Director - Financial Advisors Association of Australia.

Mr McDonagh holds degrees in Business and Law, Master of Marketing Management, Master of Commercial Law and completed the Executive Development Program at Kellogg School of Management – Northwestern University. Fellow of the Australian Marketing Institute, Certified Practising Marketer, Golden Key International Honour Society and Graduate Member of the Australian Institute of Company Directors. Shaun has spent decades working with rural, regional and urban communities to help overcome situations of disadvantage.

Ms Julie Toma is passionate about making a difference to improving the health and wellbeing of our people and communities.

Julie’s career spans senior executive leadership roles for global healthcare corporations including Sonic Clinical Services, Cochlear, Kimberly-Clark Healthcare and Becton Dickinson (BD) as well as not-for-profit sector C-suite roles covering healthcare, aged care, disability services, mental wellbeing and social services. Julie provides deep expertise regarding strategy, brand, communications, customer and employee experience, culture and stakeholder engagement.

Julie holds Non-Executive Director roles for WHAL, the Combined Dispensaries Friendly Society and the Barbara May Foundation. Previous board and committee roles include Jannawi Connections; the Australian Dental Health Foundation; LiveBetter Limited; the Asthma Foundation ACT; NSW Council Chair for the Australian Marketing Institute and member of the Cancer Australia Research Grant Advisory Committee.

Tertiary education includes a Bachelor of Applied Science (Biomedical), MBA and GAICD credentials.

Member of the Governance Committee
Member of the Western Community Advisory Council

Member of the Western and Far Western joint PHN & Local Health District Board Committees.

Matthew Banning has a proven record of positively impacting and influencing organisations and industry, delivering for customers, staff and stakeholders, while maintaining honesty, integrity and respect in looking after the wellbeing of the business and its people.

Matt has strong finance and operational management experience in the private health insurance (PHI) market and in diversified markets, including mining, education, and manufacturing industries with expertise in dealing with complex issues and managing key stakeholders, strategic business, and government relationships, as well as executing change management initiatives.

A certified practicing Speech Pathologist, Danielle’s current work with Royal Far West involves leading a large multidisciplinary clinical service delivering high quality allied health services to schools throughout rural and remote Australia.

Danielle's experience includes working collaboratively with internal and external stakeholders to enhance service delivery, improve indigenous health, and develop strategic decisions particularly at the interface of health and education.

Danielle also brings significant expertise in healthcare within rural and remote communities, particularly in Western NSW, ensuring that services are tailored to meet their unique needs and challenges.

Michael is a proud Galari man of the Wiradjuri nation who has worked in a number NSW Government agencies within the human services sector over thirteen years including Department of Education, Department of Communities and Justice, NSW Police Force, Aboriginal Affairs NSW and TAFE NSW.

Michael has spent the last four years as Chief Operations Officer with Orange Aboriginal Medical Service where his main oversights was the Diversified Services Division and Corporate Business Partners.

Michael currently sits on the TAFE NSW Western Aboriginal Advisory Committee, the Ministerial Aboriginal Partnership Group and the Aboriginal-led Commission Steering Committee.

Passionate about the health industry, Brad Porter has been a registered paramedic since 1998, and prior to joining WNSW PHN, spent the previous 15 years working in the Central West as Associate Director Clinical Operations, Western Sector and Western Control Zone Manager at NSW Ambulance. Having recently held the Chief Operating Officer at WNSW PHN, Brad is pleased to return as the Chief Executive Officer to drive change, lead, support and strengthen placed-based co-designed changes to the primary healthcare sector in Western NSW for better access and patient outcomes. People and patients are Brad’s highest priority, and he lives and works on Wiradjuri land in Bathurst.

Graeme Allen is a Dubbo local, born and bred. Graeme loves living in the Western NSW region and is a passionate advocate for health and wellbeing, and the health outcomes of local communities. Graeme has completed a Bachelor of Business (Accounting), CPA and holds over ten years of experience in business services as a tax accountant and ten years as Management Accountant and Executive Manager in health, demonstrating a huge commitment to the not-for-profit sector.

As Executive Manager of Corporate Services, Graeme oversees Information Technology, Quality and Risk, Finance, Procurement and Administration functions. Outside of the office, Graeme loves to play basketball and cricket and volunteers with the Rural Fire Service. 

Michele Smith is a Registered Nurse with a Masters in Health Administration from Monash University and a Diploma in Management. Her nursing career began in the operating theatre and later moved into remote nursing in the Northern Territory. While in the Territory, Michele managed various Primary Healthcare Clinics in very remote areas (Canteen Creek, Epenarra, Borroloola, Hermannsburg) with the Department of Health, then held the General Manager/Director of Nursing role at Tennant Creek Hospital, and for a period of 12 months, acted in the Regional Director Barkly Region role. Seeking new challenges, Michele moved to NSW in mid-2021 to take up the role of Health Services Manager for a Rehabilitation, Palliative Care, and Community Services Hospital before joining WNSW PHN in 2023.

Michele is committed to service delivery that is effective, efficient, and sustainable, with robust systems and a quality focus on both clinical and management practices. Her work ensures good clinical outcomes by adhering to organisational policies and clinical governance principles. Michele believes in a patient-centered care model, where meaningful engagement with patients is paramount to understanding their needs and establishing effective communication between patients and clinicians.