MEET THE TEAM

Bruce Levett (he/him)

Chief Executive Officer
bruce@healthconsumerstas.org.au

Bruce Levett has been appointed as the Chief Executive Officer and commenced work in late August 2018. Originally from Burnie, educated in Hobart, Bruce is an experienced, grounded and value based professional and has a strong background in stakeholder engagement, business management, strategy and policy development across both the public and private sectors. Bruce worked in Hobart in state government and then as a management consultant for six years before moving to Melbourne together with his partner in 2000.

He returned with a young family to Hobart earlier this year after working in senior government roles in Victoria and more recently working on an international aid project in the Solomon Islands. This role involved rebuilding the media industry association into an organisation that influenced media outcomes and standards across the nation. Through a combination of public advocacy and working behind the scenes with the Solomon Islands Government and Ministries, a focus of the role was to also ensure the relationship between government leaders and media was transparent and productive.

Bruce is passionate about developing partnerships and collaborative approaches to influence change and advising on organisational and systems processes to ensure peoples’ views influence public policy.

David Puls

Community Engagement Worker – HWN Huonville david@healthconsumerstas.org.au

David Puls
David is a Community Engagement Worker on Melukerdee and Lyluequonny Country in the Huon Valley. David was born on Noongar Boodja, growing up in Booragoon (the lower reaches of the Canning River in Perth), where he worked and studied, joining the team at the Aboriginal Legal Service after completing a law degree, and working with the Njamal mob in the North of Western Australia, assisting with their Native Title rights. David moved to Gadigal Country and worked as a community lawyer with HIV/AIDS Legal Centre before moving out of law and into a management role at the College of Physicians (RACP). He completed an MBA and became a consultant working in the health and community sectors for several consulting firms, until starting his own firm in 1997.

David relocated to the Huon Valley after spending many years visiting the Valley for extended periods. David is located in Geeveston and is the current custodian of an old house and a bit of land and is trying his best to spend as much time as possible restoring the bush and garden on the property, and staring into the middle distance, listening to the birds, and playing the guitar.

In his working life, David has worked with not for profits and social enterprise, coaching them on governance, strategy, and social impact. He has a particular interest in making things less complicated for not for profits, focusing on the things that really matter. As well as working for himself in his spare time, he has been working with the Social Impact Hub to deliver social sector capacity building projects. In Sydney he worked with Murawin, an Indigenous owned consulting firm, undertaking community engagement and co-deign with the Aboriginal community, to honour and connect with Country in large government infrastructure projects (such as Sydney Metro, and State Significant Planning Projects in the Snowy Mountains and Moree).

Ellen MacDonald (she/her)

Community Engagement Manager
ellen@healthconsumerstas.org.au

Ellen MacDonald
Ellen grew up on the lands of the Turrbal people in South East Queensland and moved to northern Tasmania in late 2017. Ellen is a Queer and disabled woman based in Launceston, and has a professional background in community development, community engagement and disability advocacy.

Ellen first became involved with Health Consumers Tasmania after a lived experience of young onset bowel cancer in 2020. At this time, she became involved in community consultations through Health Consumers Tasmania and then through various committees and groups as a consumer representative, including on the Australian Health Practitioner Regulation Agency (Ahpra) Community Advisory Council.

Ellen is deeply passionate about consumers and community being the leaders of change and in the importance of valuing lived experience. She brings this passion and her own lived experience to her role with Health Consumers Tasmania in the training and broader community engagement work that she undertakes as the Community Engagement Manager.

Sheridan Krysik (she/her)

Community Engagement Worker – HWN Huonville
sheridan@healthconsumerstas.org.au

Sheridan Krysik
Sheridan is a Community Engagement Worker in the Huon Valley. Sheridan grew up in country Victoria on the traditional lands of the Taungurung People. It was there, during her youth that she developed a strong connection to the river, spending most of her summers ‘in or on the water’.

After spending a few years travelling and living in the Northern Hemisphere, Sheridan moved to Tasmania (in 2018). Since then, she has felt drawn to the Huon River and the Huon Valley in general.
She now lives in Geeveston on the traditional lands of the Melukerdee people and is very happy that her commute to work involves 20 minutes of looking at the stunning Huon River.

Sheridan lives with her small family on a little patch of land that they love learning from as they attempt to care for & grow food on it. They love the sense of community that is ever present in the Valley and the fact that there are probably more people in town who know their son by name than there ever was in her husband’s suburban childhood in the north of London.

Prior to joining the Health Consumers team in early 2022, Sheridan worked as a Community Project Manager for an NDIS service provider. Her projects across the state were varied but each had a focus on supporting people with disability to engage in their communities in a meaningful way. Sheridan strongly believes that good health for individuals is only possibly when we feel connected to others; when we are part of a strong, supportive community.

Hannah Fielder (she/her)

Policy Officer
hannah@healthconsumerstas.org.au

hannah
Hannah began her involvement with Health Consumers Tas in late 2021 as policy officer. Hannah has an academic and professional background in the fields of ageing and dementia as well as public health. Hannah’s particular interest is in community-driven, local solutions to public health problems, as well as ways in which people and communities can take action to stay healthy and active throughout life.

She has worked with aged care services, not-for-profit, community and academic organisations to produce online resources and published academic work and believes the key to solving problems is to listen to people. Hannah’s role with Health Consumers Tasmania involves keeping up to date and advising on health policy and research, but also to facilitate community-driven health solutions on the Tasman Peninsula, where she lives.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Megan Collier

Community Engagement Worker – HWN Ulverstone
megan@healthconsumerstas.org.au

Megan Collier
Megan commenced as a Community Engagement Worker with HCT’s Health and Wellbeing Networks Project in Ulverstone, after relocating from Brisbane to Penguin.
She is a health and wellbeing professional, with most experience gained in the not-for-profit sector. She’s worked extensively throughout Australia and the UK, with organisations including the Heart Foundation, Cancer Council, BreastScreen QLD and NT, a Division of General Practice and more recently a staff wellbeing role with Queensland’s Department of Education. She is a Registered Nurse with a Masters in Health Science (Health Promotion), and completed additional qualifications prior to launching her own stress management coaching business. Megan is passionate about preventative health and education, with a strong interest in supporting social connection in our community, for the many benefits it brings.

Debra Mill (she/her)

Community Engagement Worker – Tasman
debra@healthconsumerstas.org.au

Debra Mill
Debra brings with her a love for seeing and immersing herself in the richness of community life. Her experience has evolved within the communities she has worked including youth, aged, refugee & migrant and remote Aboriginal communities.

Her skills range from counselling, health promotions, project management and cross-cultural collaborations. She has conducted innovative and collaborative projects both locally and nationally.

 

 

 

 

Bec Smith

Community Engagement Worker – HWN Scottsdale bec@healthconsumerstas.org.au

Bec Smith
Bec is a Community Engagement Worker in the Dorset region. Bec joined Health Consumers Tasmania in May 2022 after finding out about the exciting project that had begun in her region.

Bec is a Social Worker with 18 years of experience in both Victoria and Tasmania in a variety of specialised fields. Bec is passionate about equitable access for all to services needed so people are able to live their lives to the fullest and achieve what is important to them. 

Bec is originally from Tasmania spending the first part of her life in remote regions. Bec now resides on a small farm with her family located halfway between Scottsdale and Bridport. Bec feels a strong connection to the vast Tasmanian landscape and loves spending time with her family in natural settings. 

Bec’s love of the region has inspired her to become more connected to her community and surroundings and to provide support to local community members.

Matty Wright (they/them)

Admin and Comms Officer
matty@healthconsumerstas.org.au

Matty Wright
Born in the Whadjuk region of Western Australia, Matty now lives on Melukerdee country in the far south of Tasmania. They are transgender, neurodivergent and disabled. They bring a wide range of experience in human rights advocacy across state, national and international settings.

Matty’s specialisation is assisting small non-profit organisations and human rights campaigns as a generalist, contributing IT, technical, social media, governance and administrative supports. Their favourite aspect to this type of work is empowering people working in these organisation and campaigns to build on their shared strengths.

At the time of writing, Matty’s special interest is the integration of chicken composting into hyperlocal food production and distribution systems. In other words, they like keeping chickens in the garden to feed their family and neighbours.

Laura Pfundt (she/her)

Community Engagement Worker – HWN Huonville
laura@healthconsumerstas.org.au

laura pfundt
Laura grew up in Northern Tasmania before heading to the mainland and overseas, travelling and doing various hospitality, fruit picking and other jobs. In 2011 she completed her Bachelor of Nursing and headed straight to Alice Springs to pursue her passion for Indigenous health. On the arrival of her daughter in 2013 she returned home to Tassie but this time to the Huon Valley on the traditional lands of the Melukerdee People.

Laura has worked across a broad range of healthcare area including remote communities in the Northern Territory and Aboriginal Community Controlled Organisations like South East Tasmanian Aboriginal Corporation (SETAC) in Cygnet where she currently works part time in her capacity as a Registered Nurse. 

Laura was excited to accept the opportunity to work with Health Consumers Tasmania in 2022 in her own community of the Huon Valley. 

She is enthusiastic about growing community, growing veggies and Caring for Country. She knows community holds the power to make profound change and is humbled each day to be part of this change.

Lisa Kelly

Community Engagement Worker – HWN Ulverstone lisa@healthconsumerstas.org.au

Lisa Kelly
Lisa Kelly joined Health Consumers Tasmania in 2022, working alongside the community of the Central Coast in the North West of Tasmania, to implement the Health and Wellbeing Networks Project. Lisa brings a depth of experience to her role as Community Engagement Worker, having worked in both health and community sectors in the North West for over 15 years in aged and disability support, community development and social research.

At a time of so much social and environmental change, Lisa is passionate about the importance of preserving and celebrating the strengths of small, rural communities. In this role she is excited to be working within her own community of the Central Coast to enhance local health and wellbeing whilst elevating their voices, as health consumers, at the policy level.

When not at work, Lisa loves exploring the natural wonders of the North West, volunteering with Live@theWharf in Ulverstone, growing food and enjoying time with friends and family.

Scott Tomkins

Community Engagement Worker – HWN Scottsdale scott@healthconsumerstas.org.au

Scott Tomkins
Scott is very actively engaged in his adopted community of Northeast Tasmania on the lands of the Pyemmairrener people. Scott has been based there for just over 2 years.

Scott enjoys working within the community with people of all ages, bringing a wealth of knowledge and experience to support health intervention and prevention for the community. Scott brings 15 years of knowledge and experience within the health industry working in the UK, New Zealand, and Australia.

Scott is passionate about supporting diverse groups of people, and reaching all members of society. He also enjoys the challenges of community health and wellbeing in rural and remote communities.

Scott supports Scottsdale FC and helps with injury management and matchday support. He enjoys supporting the club because he likes being part of a great group of people that support each other and the community.

His passion in health and wellbeing came from a young age, being heavily involved in sport and experience of injuries. Due to a life changing injury in sport, he went on to university to study a BSc in Sports Therapy in the UK.

As Scott’s career developed, he became more active within the mental health and chronic health spaces and is a big supporter of community networks. He offers time to volunteering within the community to support groups such as the Dorset Suicide Prevention Network.

Scott is thoroughly enjoying working with Health Consumers Tasmania as he has experienced and seen the need for the Health and Wellbeing Networks Project within the Northeast region of Tasmania.

 


 

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