FHRI Fund Advisory Council

FHRI Fund Advisory Council Chair: Mr John Van Der Wielen

John is the Chairman of Orthocell, a Senior Adviser for Appian Capital Advisory and a Senior Adviser for Bridgewest.

John is a highly accomplished senior executive with more than 30 years’ experience across a broad range of industries. He was the Chief Executive Office of HBF, a large national health insurer, and has over 30 years’ experience in insurance, wealth management, private banking and investments including executive positions within several financial services groups. John has been the Non-Executive Chair for Crown Perth, Non-Executive Director for Crown Resorts, Non-Executive Director for the Royal Flying Doctor Service WA and has held multiple other directorships during his career.

John previously served as the inaugural Chair of the FHRI Fund Advisory Council (2020 to 2024) and played a key role in establishing the fund’s governance and strategic direction.

He holds an MBA from the University of Western Australia and has studied at London Business School and Oxford University. He is a Fellow of the Australian Institute of Company Directors.

FHRI Fund Advisory Council Member: Mr Kane Blackman

Kane Blackman is the Chief Executive Officer of Good Sammy Enterprises, an iconic Western Australian for-purpose organisation that employs 850 people within social enterprises in Retail, Recycling, Warehousing, Logistics, E-Commerce, Property Care, Hospitality and Service Provision. Good Sammy creates employment opportunities for people with disability, and over 50% of its workforce have a disability.

His previous senior executive roles have been in private and Government businesses within the financial services and resource sectors.

Kane’s passion is working in commercial environments to drive social outcomes, which is informed by his experience as a father of a child with a rare disease.

Kane is currently a Trustee of the Morning Sunshine Foundation and President of the Leederville Sporting Club.

Kane’s prior Board Roles include: Chair of Ministerial Advisory Council on Disability, Director of Therapy Focus, Director of Charitable Reuse Australia, and Deputy Chair of Rare Voices Australia.

FHRI Fund Advisory Council Member: Adjunct Professor Dale Fisher

Dale, BB(BA), MBA, is the CEO of Silver Chain Group, Australia's leading in-home care specialist, providing complete health and aged care services to more than 105,000 clients a year and employing more than 4,400 people. With a national service offering, Silverchain aims to revolutionise the way care is provided and to transform the way it is received. Guided by its own world class research, Silverchain is the national leader in the provision of comprehensive care at home.

Prior to joining Silverchain, Dale was CEO of Peter MacCallum Cancer Centre, establishing Peter Mac as Australia’s largest cancer centre and a world leader in translational cancer research. Dale was previously CEO of the Royal Women’s Hospital in Victoria where she re-established the identity of the Women’s as a standalone specialist Hospital.  

Dale is an Adjunct Professor in the School of Public Health and Preventative Medicine at Monash University, an Adjunct Professor at Swinburne University (Research) and a former Registered Nurse.

 FHRI Fund Advisory Council Member: Jennifer Lawrence

With over 40 years’ experience in senior executive roles across the health and human services sector, Jennifer brings a unique understanding of the full spectrum of the health and primary care sectors combined with hands on experience as a Chief Executive Officer.

As Chief Executive of Brightwater Care Group Ltd Jennifer gained extensive experience in financial management, the development of new businesses and project management of large building developments.

Jennifer is currently a Board Director for Harry Perkins Institute of Medical Research and a Board Director for Curtin Heritage Living.

FHRI Fund Advisory Council Member: Professor Christina Mitchell AO

Professor Christina Mitchell is Dean, Faculty of Medicine, Nursing & Health Sciences at Monash University having trained as a physician scientist specialising in clinical haematology.

Professor Mitchell was the first woman to be appointed Dean of Medicine of a Go8 university in Australia. She is a recipient of the Lemberg Medal and is a Sir John Monash Distinguished Professor.

She is an Order of Australia Award recipient for distinguished service to medicine in the field of haematology, to medical education and research, and to academic leadership. Professor Mitchell is a member of the Australian Academy of Health and Medical Sciences.

 FHRI Fund Advisory Council Member: Dr Marcus Tan

Marcus is an experienced medical doctor, healthcare and technology entrepreneur, and company director with over 25 years of clinical and commercial experience.

He holds a medical degree from the University of Western Australia and an Executive MBA from the Australian Graduate School of Management. He is a Fellow of the Royal Australian College of General Practitioners and the Australian Institute of Company Directors.

Dr Tan has held senior management positions as Medical Director and Managing Director for a national clinic group and a health management consultancy.

He chaired and held director roles over a period of 20 years with the Divisions of General Practice, GP Networks, Medicare Locals, for which he was awarded an Adjunct Associate Professorship in Health Leadership and Management by Curtin University.

He was also a founding director of WA Primary Health Alliance (WAPHA) and previously served on the Governing Council for the South Metropolitan Area Health Service and the board and council of the Australian Medical Association (WA).

As the previous Founder, CEO, and Managing Director of Healthengine, Dr Tan led Australia's largest online consumer healthcare platform and remains a prominent figure in the Australian technology and innovation ecosystem as a Venture and Limited Partner at Purpose Ventures, the Entrepreneur in Residence at RAC WA's BetterLabs Ventures, and the Chair of Spacecubed.

Dr Tan supports the social and community sector through his roles on the board of the Foundation of the WA Museum, as executive chair of the Wellspring Foundation, and as an ambassador for the Meridian Global Foundation. He has previously served on the board of Perth Modern School, Giving West, and the Channel 7 Telethon Trust.

FHRI Fund Advisory Council Member: Professor Angus Turner

Professor Angus Turner is the founder and director of Lions Outback Vision, an outreach service delivery and research unit of the Lions Eye Institute in Perth, Western Australia. As a Kimberley-based ophthalmologist providing services across WA, Angus' research has focussed on enhancing eye care delivery to all in regional Western Australia and pioneering telehealth systems including harnessing the potential of artificial intelligence (AI).

Prof Turner completed medical training at the University of Western Australia, before studying at Oxford University and completing a Masters of Evidence Based Medicine as a Rhodes scholar.

Prof Turner launched the Lions Outback Vision Van in 2016, a mobile clinic providing ophthalmic services in regional and remote WA, and established the Northwest Eye Hub in 2020 - a collaborative health centre where local consultants provide eye health services across WA’s North West.

Prof Turner is a keen researcher, with a passion for translational projects and has established collaborations with global partners in AI, including Google Health and University College London. His recent research study showing the efficiency of different deep learning systems in a real-world rural environment enabled he and his team to win the State Government’s Pilbara Challenge.

Professor Turner sits on the Board of the Royal Australian Flying Doctor Service (WA Operations) and The Lions Eye Institute.

FHRI Fund Advisory Council member (non-voting): Ms Rebecca Brown

Director General of the WA Department of Jobs, Tourism, Science and Innovation (JTSI)

Ms Rebecca Brown commenced as Director General of JTSI in September 2018. In this role, she is also Chief Executive Officer of Tourism Western Australia.

Ms Brown led significant change across JTSI to modernise the agency to become critical in advancing the State Government’s key policy agendas. Through her leadership, JTSI has played an increasingly key role in growing local jobs and diversifying the State’s industry base and export potential. JTSI plays an important role in supporting government strategy in leveraging the broader research, science and innovation community to advance outcomes for Western Australia.

Ms Brown was appointed Acting Director General of the Department of the Premier and Cabinet from March 2020 to May 2021 to support the State Government’s early response to the COVID-19 pandemic, returning to her JTSI role in June 2021. Ms Brown has worked for both Federal and State government agencies in a range of senior roles across revenue and economic policy, social policy, resourcing and performance. She has an Honours Degree in Economics from the University of Western Australia and is a graduate of the Australian Institute of Company Directors.

 FHRI Fund Advisory Council member (non-voting): Dr Shirley Bowen

Dr Shirley Bowen is the Director General of Health. 

Dr Bowen is a physician with extensive experience across all aspects of health service delivery. She is passionate about person centred care and focused on delivering excellent health care to the people of Western Australia.

She has most recently been the North Metropolitan Health Service (NMHS) Chief Executive and prior to that held the position of CEO of St John of God (SJOG) Subiaco Hospital.

Dr Bowen has a deep knowledge across the health sector with Executive experience leading public and private hospitals, research, education, and community services. Her past appointments include being Chief Medical Officer of the ACT, Executive Director of Fremantle Hospital and Dean of the School of Medicine, University of Notre Dame Australia.

With dual Fellowships in Infectious Diseases (FRACP) and Sexual Health medicine (FAChSHM), Dr Bowen also has extensive experience as a clinician.

Dr Bowen has a passion for excellent and compassionate patient care and is committed to visible and authentic leadership. She is honoured to have the opportunity to lead WA Health and is committed to providing timely, accessible and evidence-based care and supporting the health workforce in their pursuit of excellence.

For past members and nominees of the FHRI Fund Advisory Council, see here.

For Advisory Council meeting communiques and other papers and reports, see here.