Our Board of Directors volunteer their time and expertise to guide WayAhead in all of the work that we do, and we are grateful for their dedication and support.
Meg Smith, Associate Professor, OAM – President
Meg Smith recently retired as a community psychologist in the School of Social Sciences at the University of Western Sydney.
She is a part-time member of the Mental Health Review Tribunal and a board member of the Black Dog Institute. She has been active in the reform of mental health services and policy since the early 1980s when she was diagnosed with bipolar disorder.
Her current research interests are the management of bipolar disorder, cannabis use and mental illness and social and community issues for people living with mental illness.
Meg was elected to the Board in 1989.
Don Murray, ACA, CPA, FAICD – Treasurer
Don is an experienced finance professional with a proven track record in financial management, business reporting , change management and team building.
He has played a mentoring and leadership role across a range of industries and business sizes.
He comes with a commitment to provide financial expertise to WayAhead and to people with lived experience of mental Illness.
Don was eleceted to the Board in 2015.
Sharyn McGee MA (UNSW), GrDipComm (UTS), BA (Hons) (MACQ) – Chair Person
Sharyn is a retired university lecturer and sociologist.
Her academic pursuits in teaching and research were mainly in the sociology of health, including mental health and alcohol and other drugs, ageing and youth.
Sharyn is currently employed on a casual basis with the Recovery College, South Eastern Sydney Local Health District as a peer educator (consumer). In that capacity she has co-produced and co-facilitated courses such as Navigating the Mental Health System Maze and Introduction to Mindfulness.
Sharyn was elected to the Board in 2006 and is Deputy Chair.
Frank Flannery, B.Sc Hons, M.Psych, M. Mgt (Health) – Deputy Chair
Frank is a Clinical Psychologist with extensive senior management experience of mental health services in hospital, community and NSW Health settings.
Since retiring from NSW Health in 2007, Frank has worked as a Surveyor Coordinator with the Australian Council on Healthcare Standards and undertaken a range of consultancy projects with NSW health services. Frank has a special interest in consumer and carer participation in health service governance, quality improvement systems and processes, risk management frameworks and strategic partnerships to achieve optimal health outcomes.
Frank was elected to the Board in 2007.
David Harper
David is an Information Technology Consultant
He has provided advice and support on matters such as Way Ahead, internal I.T. maintenance and the shared services project (Partners in Change). He has interests in other organisations such as the Ryde Bipolar Support Group,(affiliated with Schizophrenia Fellowship, ASteen Social Club (affiliated with Autism Spectrum Australia) and Bipolar Australia.
David was elected to the Board in 2011.
Associate Professor Viviana Wuthrich
Viviana is a clinical psychologist, currently an Associate Professor at the Centre for Emotional Health at Macquarie University, and she is also in private practice in Hornsby
Her major interests include
- Understanding the causes and maintaining factors for mental disorders
- Developing and evaluating psychological interventions
- Training mental health professionals and disseminating effective evidence based treatments into the community
- Particular interest in mental health of children, adolescents and older adults.
Viviana’s research interests relate to improving identification of mental disorders , improving access to evidence-based treatments and developing and evaluating treatment programs in schools, private practice, community settings and online. In particular Viviana has special interests in improving the lives of children, adolescents and older adults who at either end of the lifespan have the lowest access to mental health treatment in the community.
Viviana was elected to the Board in 2016.
Stephen Bourne
Stephen is a lawyer in private practice. He has a lengthy history of working with individuals who are affected by mental health issues, especially individuals whose mental health issues have led to their involvement in the criminal justice system, or to them having children removed into statutory care due to child protection concerns and allegations. He has post-graduate qualifications in law and psychology. As well as the WayAhead Board, Stephen is Panel Lawyer for Legal Aid NSW and Department of Family and Community Services; Director of Kirklaw Pty Ltd., and Fellow of the Australian and New Zealand Institute of Insurance and Finance.
Stephen was elected to the board in 2018.
Pam Barker
Pam is the Program Manager, Pride in Health + Wellbeing at ACON. Prior to that Pam worked as Senior Manager, Workplace Engagement at the Black Dog Institute. Pam’s experience working as a CEO, working with boards and the not for profit sector will be an asset to WayAhead. She identifies as part of the LGBTIQ community and her experience both in the NFP and corporate business sector imbodied, with her lived experience with mental health, allows her to contribute uniquely to WayAhead’s mission and values from a board position.
Pam was elected to the board in 2018.
Linda Hurst
Linda is Centre Manager (Westfield). Her interest in mental health comes from her experience of caring for a sister with bi-polar disorder and a father suffering from dementia. Linda’s background in senior marketing roles, commercial acumen gained through managing a range of businesses and day to day connection with the public puts her in a position where she can add significant value to WayAhead.
Linda was elected to the board in 2018.
