Our People

Associate Professor Matthew Gray is General Practitioner at Schwarz Family Practice in Elderslie and as well as SWSPHN Chair, is also Deputy Chair of the South Western Sydney Local Health District Board.

A/Prof Gray was recognised for his long-term and ongoing contribution to community health with a Medal of the Order of Australia on Australia Day in 2022, a fitting recognition of his passion and commitment to the health of local residents.

He also dedicates his time to working with the African AIDS Foundation along with his wife and family.

Professor Jenny Reath was the Foundation Peter Brennan Chair of General Practice at Western Sydney University School of Medicine from 2010 to 2022.

She is passionate about Aboriginal health, having worked for 30 years in rural and urban Aboriginal Community Controlled Health Services, most recently as a part-time GP at Tharawal Aboriginal Corporation from 2017 to 2022.

Professor Reath is a member of the Royal Australian College of General Practitioners National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Health Faculty.

Karen Edwards is the Clinical Director at Gidget Foundation Australia, and brings previous experience from both public and private sector roles in health management, governance and clinical psychology to her director role at SWSPHN.

Ms Edwards is committed to enabling excellence in health service delivery through system safety, good governance and sound risk management.

Current professional memberships include the Australian Psychological Society, the Australian Institute of Company Directors, and the Australian College of Health Service Managers.

Gidget Foundation team profile

Dr Ken McCroary is the owner, Director and Principal at Macarthur General Practice, member of the Council of General Practice of the Australian Medical Association (Federal) and regional representative for South Western Sydney on the NSW & ACT Faculty Board of Royal Australian College of General Practitioners (RACGP).

He is a member of RACGP Expert Committee for Quality Care, Chair of Sydney South West GP Link, Chair of the NSW Council of General Practice of the Australian Medical Association (NSW), Conjoint Lecturer, School of Medicine at Western Sydney University and Conjoint Senior Lecturer, School of Public Health and Community Medicine at the University of NSW.

John Adam is a solicitor and Managing Partner at Marsdens Law Group specialising in commercial and property law.

Mr Adam is an active member of Liverpool Rotary Club, Secretary of the Macarthur Club, Past President of the Macarthur Law Society, and Past Chair of the Mater Dei School Board.

He continues supporting Mater Dei as a Committee Member.

Mr Adam played first grade rugby league for the North Sydney Bears between 1976 and 1984, captaining the team during the 1981 to 1983 seasons.

He was a selector and member of the North Sydney Bears Board between 1991 and 2000, as well as serving as President of the Rugby League Players Association from 1985 to 1990.

He is married with four lovely daughters, lives locally, and is passionate about the growth and opportunities in South Western Sydney.

Sonia Marshall has a 30-year career in NSW Health, starting as an ICU nurse at Griffith Base Hospital, before working in a range of leadership roles in rural, regional and urban settings.

She joined South Western Sydney Local Health District (SWSLHD) in 2016, initially as Director Nursing and Midwifery, where she focused on transforming care and experiences for the workforce, patients and community.

As Incident Controller for SWSLHD’s COVID-19 Emergency Operations Centre, her remarkable leadership ensured the safety of staff and the diverse community throughout the fast-moving and everchanging response.

Ms Marshall is also passionate about the future of healthcare, through teaching and mentoring, and fostering research. She established the South Western Sydney Nursing and Midwifery Research Alliance, partnering with the Ingham Institute for Applied Medical Research and seven universities and is Adjunct Associate Professor, School of Nursing and Midwifery at Western Sydney University and Honorary Principal Fellow, Faculty of Science, Medicine and Health at the University of Wollongong.

She has completed an MBA, a BSc (Nursing) and studies in Intensive Care Nursing, Public Administration and Health Leadership.

Dr Michael Tam is a specialist GP, and Director of the Primary and Integrated Care Unit in South Western Sydney Local Health District (SWSLHD), combining the provision of family medicine, research, health services development and governance.

Dr Tam’s clinical interest is in the whole-person primary care of people living with mental illness.

He is a Conjoint Senior Lecturer of the School of Population Health at the University of New South Wales where he teaches and supervises both clinical and research students in South Western Sydney.

Dr Tam is a member of the RACGP Expert Committee-Quality Care and is the Co-Chair of the RACGP First Do No Harm: a guide to choosing wisely in general practice project.

Dr Tam has completed directorship training at the Australian Institute of Company Directors, and he is a Non-Executive Director and Deputy Chair of Sydney South West GP Link Ltd.

He is an alumnus of the RACGP Future Leaders Program and was the recipient of the 2022 RACGP Future Leaders President’s Medal.

Michelle Cutler is an experienced executive and board member with extensive experience in governance, legal issues management, organisational and data strategy, and community engagement.

With past CEO roles in the health, legal and social services sectors, she brings a practical and impact focused approach to community based service delivery and stakeholder engagement.

She is a former finance lawyer and a graduate of the Australian Institute of Company Directors, and currently acts as an advisor to social purpose organisations, where she helps boards and CEOs enhance their impact and deliver on their strategic goals.

Her work encompasses advising organisations on governance, regulatory and compliance issues, data and financial management issues, stakeholder engagement as well as funding.

As the immediate past National CEO of Community Legal Centres Australia and previously the National General Manager of OzHarvest, Ms Cutler has experience in ensuring the delivery of critical community-based services across Australia, including to some of our most diverse and economically and socially disadvantaged people and communities.

Currently, she serves as Chair of the Board of Shaun Parker & Company, a contemporary dance company known for its diversity and social advocacy and previously was on the board of a community housing provider supporting women and children fleeing domestic violence, and Give a Smile, an initiative providing free orthodontic care to children on public dental waiting lists.

Christine Carriage has extensive experience in, and a passion for supporting culturally appropriate care for Indigenous communities.

Ms Carriage is an Aboriginal woman and Traditional Owner of Gunai/Kurnai and Yuin heritage whose leadership roles have always emphasised cultural safety, integrity, and incorporating traditional knowledge and practices into healthcare delivery.

She also has an in-depth understanding of the healthcare needs of the Indigenous community in South Western Sydney.

Ms Carriage’s experience includes:

– South Western Sydney Local Health District Board where she gained a comprehensive understanding of healthcare governance, policy development and strategic planning within a local health district

– Chair of the Aboriginal Health Board Committee where she led a committee comprising community members, LHD and PHN representatives to advocate for Aboriginal health initiatives and implement strategies to address health disparities

– Employment with the Australian Indigenous Doctors Association where she provided culturally-centred research, guided strategic direction for improving Indigenous health outcomes and fostered strategic partnerships to develop a culturally safe healthcare system

Ms Carriage also currently serves on the Tharawal Aboriginal Medical Service Board.

Keith McDonald has been CEO since 2017, previously working at the PHN as Clinical Director. Keith is a Fellow of the Australasian College of Health Service Management (FCHSM) and a Graduate of the Australian Institute of Company Directors (GAICD) and has more than 20 years’ experience in health service management across the primary and acute care sectors, plus a further 10 years clinical experience as a registered Physiotherapist in public hospitals and private practice across both metropolitan and rural settings.

Keith has a Doctor of Philosophy (PhD), from the Sydney Business School, University of Wollongong; Master of Health Service Management (with Distinction), from Charles Sturt University; Bachelor of Applied Science – Physiotherapy (with Distinction) from Cumberland College of Health Sciences; and Diploma of Teaching from Catholic College of Education Sydney.

Amy Prince has 12 years’ experience in health care management at various levels from frontline to executive roles. She has served as Director of Planning and Performance since 2017.

Amy holds a Master of Public Health and a Master of Management, is a member of the Australian Institute of Company Directors and is qualified in training and assessment.

Amy’s key skills lay in the intersection of strategy and delivery, having developed a framework for population health needs assessment from inception to execution and leading Needs Assessment analysis over multiple years. She was also key in setting up SWSPHN as a commissioning agent and has extensive community and stakeholder consultation experience.

Growing up in the local region, Amy has a passion for serving the communities of South Western Sydney and is committed to addressing local health needs and gaps.

Kristen Short has close to 25 years’ experience in leadership roles across a range of industries including health, financial services and technology. These roles have spanned project and portfolio management and data.

Kristen was appointed Director of Innovation and Partnerships at SWSPHN in early 2018, leading the Service Support, Communications and Stakeholder Engagement and Digital and Data teams.

Kristen specialises in strategic planning, driving data-driven outcomes, steering general practice transformation and quality improvement through innovation, process improvement and the adoption of technology.

She has a Master of Business and Technology, is a Member of the Institute of Company Directors.