Public Advisory Heath Committee - Committee Secretariat

About Us

Secretariat

The Committee is supported by the following staff:

Margaret Earle.

Margaret Earle, NHC Manager
My background is in policy analysis, health promotion and adult education. I am currently studying towards the Diploma in Public Health.

I began working as a senior analyst in the National Health Committee (NHC) secretariat in mid 2001, and was appointed as the manager in March 2005.

Prior to joining the secretariat I was a senior policy analyst for the Senior Citizens Unit, in the Ministry of Social Policy. I also worked for the District Health Councils in Victoria, Australia and was employed by the NZ Department of Health to develop health promotion strategies with older people, which included producing a weekly radio programme.

Angela Faherty, Executive Assistant
I joined the secretariat in March 2003 after living abroad for 8 years.

I have a wide experience working in both the private and public sector and my previous role was Personal Assistant for a Managing Director for a PR and Communications company in London.

Previous to this I was working in Social Services in the Borough of Camden as a Development Assistant in Strategic Development. The section delivered a wide range of health services and I was involved in support work for the development of services for people with HIV and Aids, people with physical disabilities, people who misuse drugs and alcohol and older people with mental health problems. I was also involved in organising black and minority ethnic forums held monthly in London.

Liza Wilcox, Senior Policy Analyst
I came to the NHC in 2006 from the Master of International Relations programme at Victoria University. My particular focus was on migration trends and policy. This was an interest sparked by three years of community support and action work in Seattle, Washington, after local immigrant communities were harassed and detained in the backlash to September 11, 2001. In addition to project management and local organising, I have a background in social research and programme evaluation through five years in business here in Wellington, conducting research for government agencies and NGOs. My long-ago history includes hardware and software support, adult education and technical writing, programming and database design for non-profits, sociology and anthropology (BA U Mass and BA Hons Victoria). I enjoy travel, Persian food and fingerpainting with my gorgeous 2 year old grandson, Gabriel.

Sara Georgeson.

Sara Georgeson, Policy Analyst

My background is in social work and adult education. I lived in Palmerston North for over 20 years before moving to Wellington in June 2005 and had strong community networks, especially in the disability sector. I worked for a Needs Assessment & Service Coordination agency (Supportlinks) as a Service Co-ordinator before starting with the NHC Secretariat. Prior to this I worked for the Universal College of Learning (UCOL) in a variety of roles including Disability Co-ordinator and lecturer. I have a Master of Social Work.

I have been on a number of committees as a community representative, including being on the Midcentral DHB's Disability Services Advisory Committee. As a disabled person myself, my ongoing focus has been on promoting the needs and issues of disabled people. I have held various positions in the Disabled Persons Assembly, including being a member of the national executive committee for a number of years.

Catherine McCullough, Policy Analyst
I joined the NHC in 2007 after completing a Masters in International Relations at Victoria University. My undergraduate studies were in criminology and religious studies and in all of my academic research I have had a focus on human rights and social justice. Prior to joining the secretariat I had been working for a number of organisations in the not-for-profit sector and maintain strong community networks, particularly within youth advocacy organisations.

Kerrie Duncan, Policy Analyst - on leave of absence until January 2011
I arrived in New Zealand in 2004 from Canada, where I worked in the public health sector and community based development in the Canadian Arctic and the Greater Toronto area. I moved to the policy environment while working for the Inuit Tapiriit Kanatami (the National Inuit Association of Canada, www.itk.ca ).

In New Zealand I have worked in the Non-Governmental sector in violence prevention and in the community public health environment (Taranaki) before moving to the National Health Committee.

My professional interests are in indigenous models of health, the non-medical determinants of health and how the policy environment can influence changes related to inequalities.

I enjoy being in the garden and working on establishing a new life in Aotearoa New Zealand.

Ben Campbell-Macdonald - Policy Analyst
I have been a policy analyst at the Ministry of Health since August 2005. I began working in the NHC secretariat in December 2008. During my time here at the Ministry (including working in the secretariat) I have worked on a wide variety of health concerns including aged care, therapeutic policy, futures planning and rural health.

Prior to joining the Ministry I studied Philosophy at the University of Otago. I am currently working towards a Post Graduate Diploma in Economics.

Kimberly Gilmore - Senior Policy Analyst
Kia ora koutou katoa. I have been in the National Health Committee Secretariat since April 2009. Before joining the Secretariat I worked at Te Puni Kokiri for 4 1/2 years in the areas of law reform, foreshore and seabed policy and Crown-Maori relationships.

I grew up in Taranaki. I completed an Honours degree in Political Studies at the University of Otago before moving to Wellington in 2004.

I am fascinated by the long-term, strategic challenges facing the health system. It also interests me how people make choices about their health, and how communities and health providers can work together better to reach people with the greatest needs.

Sarah Widmer - Senior Policy Analyst
I came to the NHC/PHAC Secretariat in 2009. My previous role was Senior Advisor at Regional Public Health in Wellington, where I focused on public health topics such as: housing, green spaces, food security, tobacco control and suicide prevention. Before I arrived in New Zealand in 2004, I worked primarily in international health and human rights in Eastern Africa, Latin America, and the Caribbean. Through this work, I became – and continue to be – committed to social and economic justice and indigenous rights. I have a BA in History of Science and a Master of Public Health.

Page last updated: 12 February 2010