WCHN Governing Board

Associate Professor Christine Dennis was appointed as the Chair of the Women’s and Children’s Health Network Governing Board in February 2023.

Christine is well regarded in South Australia and nationally for her commitment to the hospital and health care industry, her contribution to the growth and development of our emerging health leaders and her extensive experience in clinical governance.

Christine is a strong business development professional with a Doctor of Business Administration (DBA) focused on International Business and Strategic Planning from University of South Australia.

Prior to commencing with WCHN, Christine held the position of Deputy Dean, Rural and Remote SA, College of Medicine and Public Health, Flinders University. She continues to lecture in Strategic Leadership and Management (Health Service Management) with the College of Business, Governance and Law, Flinders University.

Christine has extensive experience in the health care sector, having held executive positions as the Chief Executive Officer, Australian Council on Healthcare Standards and ACHS International, Chief Operating Officer, Top End Health Service Northern Territory and A/Chief Executive, Northern Territory, Department of Health. Further, she has worked across SA Health and the Department for Health and Wellbeing.

Susy Daw trained as a Registered Nurse in 1985, the last hospital based training group from the ‘The Adelaide Children’s Hospital’. She worked as a Registered Nurse in clinical and management roles for twelve years before starting her business in Risk and Strategy Consulting in 1996.

Since then, Susy has worked in the public, private and not-for-profit sectors across a large range of industries. She works on high-level boardroom discussions regarding risk appetite or is equally at home with all levels of staff, working on operational, financial or strategic risk analysis.

Other governance expertise includes fifteen years as a facilitator for the Australian Institute of Company Directors in the Foundations of Directorship, Company Directors Course, Applied Risk Governance and Governing to Protect Vulnerable People courses.

Susy's current board roles include St Andrew’s Hospital Board and Chair, St Andrew’s Hospital Risk Committee, Anglicare Housing Board, Chair of University of Adelaide Risk Management Reference Committee, and the ECH Inc SA Clinical Quality sub-committee.

Susy brings skills in clinical governance, risk and audit to the Governing Board.

Dr Tahnya Donaghy is a Managing Partner for PEG Consulting, which has led strategic projects for multiple State and Territory governments. This has included reviews of whistle blower legislation, retirement villages legislation, lands title legislation, regulatory reviews, justice system projects, women in leadership policy, and organisational and governance reforms. Through PEG, Tahnya also supported Victorian and South Australian senior executive health teams in their response to the COVID pandemic.

Tahnya is also a Founding Partner and Principal of The Dux Project, a national company that provides executive development programs and services for public purpose leaders.

Tahnya’s past roles in the South Australian Government include senior executive roles in the Department of Premier and Cabinet, and SA Health.

Tahnya is a proud South Australian who benefits from working with governments around Australia on issues which reflect her deep commitment to strong public policy outcomes for our community.

Dr Stephen Christley was formerly the Chief Public Health Officer at SA Health. Since retiring from this position he has worked in a number of short-term roles, including as Interim Commissioner, SA Mental Health Commission and Member and Independent Inquiry Panel for Review of Plastics to Fuel proposal for the ACT Minister for Planning and Environment. Stephen has previously held senior executive roles in NSW including 12 years as an Area Health Service Chief Executive, and Director, Services Development and Medical Officer of Health for a rural health region. Stephen’s experience and background in medicine and public health has seen him undertake numerous board roles, including President, Australian Healthcare and Hospitals Association and member of the National Blood Authority Board. He is a current board member of Flinders Reproductive Medicine (Flinders Fertility) and ECH, and Deputy Presiding Member of the Environment Protection Authority South Australia. He is a Graduate of the Australian Institute of Company Directors. In his now distant clinical career he held graduate diplomas in obstetrics and paediatrics. Stephen brings a wealth of expertise and knowledge around public health issues and the management of public health services to the Governing Board.

Dr David Everett OAM is a general paediatrician who brings decades of clinical experience to our Governing Board.

David is well known to our Network, having previously been the Director, Clinical Training (DCT) at WCHN prior to his retirement. He worked for 22 years in Paediatrics at Flinders Medical Centre with areas of special expertise, including forensic medical assessment for Child Protection Services, childhood diabetes management and leading clinical practice re-design to improve patient safety and outcomes.

His medical education work included being the DCT at Flinders Medical Centre for 5 years and co-founding the TMO Unit, and being the Director, Physician Education for the Royal Australasian College of Physicians (RACP) for many years.

David was also awarded an Order of Australia Medal for his services to medicine as a paediatrician.

Sandy Miller is a Wirangu woman from the Ceduna area. She has provided strong leadership and excellence in policy development and service design across Aboriginal health, ageing and welfare portfolios. A trail blazer in the public sector at a time when Aboriginal women were not represented, she assisted in breaking down the barriers for Aboriginal women aspiring to leadership roles. Maintaining her strong advocacy skills since leaving the public sector, Sandy has represented South Australian women’s voices at a national level through her commitment to the National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Women’s Alliance and internationally at the United Nations. She is also an advocate for the rights of Aboriginal Elders. Sandy has held senior leadership roles in Aboriginal health, legal rights and law, Native Title Services and social work and child protection. She is currently an Executive Member of the Aboriginal Legal Rights Movement, Indigenous Peoples Organisation, Human Rights Commission, a member of the Management Assessment Panel, Exceptional Needs Unit and on the Community Leadership Reference Committee on Child Protection. Sandy brings significant Aboriginal health experience to the Governing Board.

Adjunct Associate Professor Stephen (Steve) Morris is currently the Chief Executive Officer of Pharmaceutical Society of Australia.

Previous roles include Chief Executive Officer, Arthritis South Australia and Chief Executive Officer, NPS Medicinewise. Prior to that Steve was Executive Director, SA Pharmacy and Chief Pharmacist, SA Health, having responsibility for the delivery of statewide pharmacy services to the public sector within South Australia.

He has worked in numerous clinical and managerial roles within health spanning pharmacy practice, including community, hospital, primary care, industry and NGO sectors.

Prior to moving to Australia Steve was the Deputy Chief Executive of the National Prescribing Centre in the UK. He has a keen interest in quality and safety systems, health literacy and workforce strategies which enhance the impact of health services on patient outcomes.