31 Jul Three new faces join the Board of Directors

Timboon and District Healthcare Service’s (TDHS) new board of directors met for the first time last Monday, with three new faces adding a variety of skills and experience.

Dr Ashley Nesseler, Frank Carlus and Anthony DeJong were appointed to the Board earlier this month when the Minister also reappointed existing members Josh McKenzie, Anne Skordis and Bryce Morden.

They all join board members Maryanne Puli Vogels, Chris Stewart, Claire Murphy and Toinette Hutchins who are mid-term in their TDHS board membership cycle.

(l-r) Anne Skordis, Frank Carlus, Josh McKenzie, Claire Murphy, Maryanne Puli Vogels, Chris Stewart, Anthony DeJong, Toinette Hutchins, Ashley Nesseler & Bryce Morden.

Dr Nesseler lives with her husband Richard and their two daughters Jade, 6, and Elise 2, in Princetown.

She was one of the inaugural graduates of the Deakin University Medical School and said her background in health and medicine would be valuable to TDHS’s future.

“For me, being a bit more involved in the local community is fabulous,” she said.

“TDHS is a great asset in our community – it’s essential that it’s strong from a governance point of view and I’m looking forward to contributing to that.

“Being a small service, we need to do everything we can to protect it and make sure it continues to be here for the local community for many years to come.”

Mr Carlus spent more than 30 years working within the State Government’s health department and said he was now semi-retired and keen to assist TDHS.

“Even though I live in Port Melbourne, I’m sort of a Peterborough person. We’ve had a place down there since 1984 and recently built a home to retire in at some stage,” he said.

“I also used to live and work in Colac, so I have a good understanding of the south-west and on a personal level having this role at the Timboon health service means I’m around Peterborough more and that’s a good thing from my point of view.”

Mr Carlus said his general understanding of health and human services were assets he believed TDHS could tap into and he was more than happy to make them available.

“I applied to become a board member with a background in health management, administration, hospitals and funding, government relations, aged care and mental health and because, being semi-retired, I have the time and energy available,” he said.

Mr DeJong is a Certified Practicing Accountant who has spent the last 20 years in senior finance roles in government and across the health, energy, sport and transport sectors.

He said he grew up on a dairy farm at Barwon Downs outside Colac and had a passion for the financial sustainability of essential services in country Victoria.

“I want to help make sure that Timboon and District Healthcare Service is around for a long time and a big part of that is making sure it’s financially sustainable,” he said.

“I have a particular skill set and, having grown up where I did, this was an opportunity to use my skills in a great part of the state to make a difference.”

Acting chief executive officer Rebecca van Wollingen said the board met for the first time on Monday afternoon and after an initial tour and induction session they got down to work.

“Board chair Maryanne Puli Vogels is overseas at the moment but joined us online, and Bryce Morden is recovering from being hit by a car while cycling so he was absent,  but acting chair Claire Murphy welcomed the new members and it was a pretty busy agenda,” she said.

“On behalf of our staff and the wider community I would like to thank everyone who applied to be on the board and congratulate all the successful candidates.

“This board has an incredibly wide skill set, is packed with experience and their appointment is a critical part of our good governance and making sure that TDHS continues to offer services that are relevant to our community.”

Photo: New TDHS Board of Directors Members (l-r) Frank Carlus, Dr Ashley Nesseler and Anthony DeJong.