Executive team

Debbie has over 40 years experience in the public health sector. She's held key leadership roles across different health facilities in Queensland

She completed her general nurse training in 1981 at Mackay Base Hospital, where she was recognised for her exceptional theoretical knowledge and nursing care.

Debbie joined us in 2006 as Executive Director of Nursing and Midwifery Services and was appointed Chief Operating Officer in 2014. She acted in the role of Chief Executive from October 2019 until her permanent appointment in May 2020.

During her time with us, she's overseen the construction of new infrastructure, approval for the new Bundaberg Hospital and new services and models of care. As Nursing Director in Rockhampton, she established the first Clinical Governance, Risk and Quality Unit in regional Queensland.

She's also managed quality improvements as part of the Short Notice Accreditation process, and the development of the Regional Medical Program. From 2020, she played a leading role in our response to the COVID-19 pandemic.

She also received an Australia Day Award in 2014 for her exceptional leadership during the 2013 floods.

Debbie has a Bachelor of Health Science (Nursing) with Distinction, a Graduate Diploma in Emergency Nursing, and became an endorsed Rural and Isolated Practice registered nurse. She also has a Master of Health Administration and Information Systems, and a Graduate Certificate in Health Service Planning.

Debbie is committed to a values-based leadership approach, focused on providing the best possible care for our communities.

Ben has 20 years experience in the hospital and health sector and has held senior and executive leadership positions for the past 13 years.

During his time with us, Ben has made improvements to surgical services access, implemented admission avoidance initiatives, and introduced model of care changes. These have resulted in better patient care and experience.

Ben has a Master of Physiotherapy, specialising in acute and rehabilitation settings, with an interest in post-stroke rehabilitation. He also has a Master of Business Administration with a focus on business leadership, highlighting his passion for innovation and strategic thinking.

Ben is dedicated to fostering excellence and driving innovation in our organisation, ensuring the delivery of exceptional health care services to our community.

Paul is a proud Torres Strait Islander man who descends from proud Meriam and Erub families.

Paul was appointed Executive Director Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Health in April 2024 and oversees and leads the development and implementation of our First Nations Health Equity Strategy. Paul also provides guidance and advice on the strategic directions, priorities and policy development in relation to the health and wellbeing of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples.

Paul began his career in NSW health and has now returned home to QLD. He brings his experience and knowledge of team leadership, the development, implementation, monitoring and auditing of policy and legislation, accreditation, compliance, strategic planning and project management.

Paul has a Bachelor of Applied Health Science, a Master of Healthcare Leadership and is undertaking a Master of Public Health.

He is committed to ensuring our health service provides holistic, culturally and clinically safe and respectful services, which allow for the best opportunity for improved health and social and emotional wellbeing outcomes for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people.

Stephen Bell is a registered psychologist with 28 years experience, including over a decade in senior and executive health leadership positions.

After getting his Bachelor of Psychology in 1994, he worked in specialist and acute public mental health service roles across Queensland.

As our former acting Chief Operating Officer, Stephen introduced new services including approval for a new Clinical Decisions Unit at Hervey Bay Hospital. Under his management, we also had substantial reductions in wait lists for specialist outpatients and endoscopy procedures.

In his previous role as our General Manager for Family and Community Services, Stephen successfully managed service restructures and improvements for maternity, paediatrics and dental patients.

Stephen has a Graduate Certificate of Health Management and is a Certified Health Executive. He is also a Fellow of the Australasian College of Health Service Management.

In his spare time, he provides volunteer mediation services to the Wide Bay community and is also a nationally accredited mediator.

Martin has worked in the health sector for 20 years and has held senior and executive leadership roles in Victoria and Queensland.

He was appointed Executive Director Finance and Performance in February 2022 and brings strategic direction in finance, health service and hospital executive skills.

In his previous role as Chief Financial Officer for Albury Wodonga Health, Martin was the executive sponsor for the development of a new patient administration system.  He also managed new statewide procurement policies as the Chief Procurement Officer. These included a new budgeting process for the organisation built from a zero-base assumption.

He also led the implementation of a new recruitment approval process incorporating finance sign-off for all recruitment actions.

Martin holds a Bachelor of Commerce and a Graduate Diploma in Applied Finance and Investments. He is recognised as a Fellow member of the Certified Practising Accountants of Australia.

Martin is passionate about leading high performing teams including identifying and developing talent across all levels of the organisation.

With over 25 years of healthcare experience, Robyn brings a wealth of knowledge to Wide Bay. Her background includes clinical and leadership positions in rural and remote nursing and midwifery, patient safety, and clinical governance.

Robyn began her career as a registered nurse at Oakey Hospital in 1995, before working in the Rural and Remote Nurse Practitioner program and getting her midwifery qualifications.

She spent the next 14 years working across several central and western Queensland locations. As Director of Nursing at Longreach Hospital, her achievements included day surgery improvements, optimising patient flow and the introduction of a Queensland-first accommodation program for pregnant women.

After joining us in 2013 as a clinical governance facilitator, she was appointed Director of Clinical Governance in 2017, followed by Executive Director of Governance in April 2020.

During this time, Robyn has managed our first Quality of Care Report and improved safety and quality frameworks. She also led our Australian-first Short-Notice Accreditation pilot. This has since been adopted in multiple other locations across the country.

Robyn was recognised with an Australia Day Award in 2016 and a Wide Bay HHS Excellence Award in 2018. These were for her pioneering work in hospital accreditation and associated research. She also presented on the topic at the 2018 World Hospital Congress.

Robyn has a Master of Business Administration and Project Management. She's also a Fellow of the International Society for Quality in Health Care and Associate Fellow of the Australasian College of Health Service Managers.

Robyn is also completing her PhD focused on quality and accreditation systems and is dedicated to advancing the field of healthcare governance.

With more than 30 years working in healthcare, Luci has worked across clinical, operational management, and people and culture roles in the public, private and not-for-profit sectors.

Luci was appointed Executive Director Human Resources in January 2023 and leads the development and implementation of our strategic human resources objectives. She directs workforce service functions to make sure they meet our business and service requirements. She also provides advice on all workforce matters.

Luci has extensive operational knowledge in values-based health organisations and understands the value of a well-developed and customer-focused human resources service.

Luci is committed to providing human resources services that improve and support the strategic direction of the organisation. She has particular interest and expertise in quality and system improvement, development of positive workplace cultures, governance and strategy.

Over the past 20 years, Robyn has held management and leadership roles in the public health sector in Queensland and the South West and Wide Bay communities.

Robyn has been instrumental in the development of new mental health services. This includes a new lived experience peer support workforce in Wide Bay, and a crisis support space in Hervey Bay.

She's also managed the construction of a 20 bed community care unit and a 10 bed Step Up Step Down facility. These were run in partnership with non-government service providers.

Robyn began her career as an allied health professional having completed her occupational therapist degree in 1990. She has presented papers at national and international conferences advocating for rural models of care. This includes the Primary Health Network (PHN) conference in 2017, supporting local management for mental health planning frameworks and tools.

Fiona has more than 36 years of nursing experience and almost 20 years in nursing leadership. During this time Fiona has been recognised with numerous awards, including Australia Day honours for her exceptional leadership during the Queensland Floods and COVID-19, as well as the Brian Prince Emergency Services Award for excellence in community communication.

Her experience and knowledge has been gained from working in both public and private healthcare facilities, enriched by international networking and a wide array of postgraduate studies including orthopaedics; emergency nursing; investigations management; health leadership, management and quality and a Master in Business Administration.

Fiona is a dynamic, highly motivated and driven leader, who understands her ‘why’ and is unafraid to have the difficult conversations. She is devoted to leading nurses and midwives in providing excellence in nursing and midwifery standards and care, and while supporting their mental health and well-being.