Mary is an occupational physician who is active in policy development and research through AFOEM and other organisations. Her interest is in getting research into practice. Decades of work in injury management has included running an early intervention case management approach across several medium to large employers. Prior to specialising in the 1990s Mary was a treating GP and after specialising a treating occupational physician. Other work has included IMEs, running RTWMatters.org (a non-profit seeking to share evidence-based practices that support better RTW), research on RTW for Safe Work Australia, teaching via Monash University, and various scheme reviews of return to work and claims management for policymakers.
Mary is the lead Fellow in AFOEM / RACP’s most recent Health Benefits of Good Work® policy development – It Pays to Care: Bringing evidence-informed practice to work injury schemes helps workers and their workplaces. An imperative for change and call to action.
I commenced working for ACC straight out of school in 1984. I worked initially in the claims area before moving into a role as a Rehabilitation Co-Ordinator. My main role included working with injured people at the Brain Injury Unit and Burwood Spinal Unit in Christchurch.
I eventually left ACC in 1993 to live overseas and on returning home in 1997 I worked for Canterbury DHB Radiology Department before returning to claims management with Spotless Services. My next role was as Rehabilitation Advisor, Canterbury DHB who at the time had become an Accredited Employer manging their work-related injuries in-house.
In 2013 I joined DOC (also an Accredited Employer) as a Senior Injury Management Advisor. My current role involves all aspects of claims management – making cover decisions, considering entitlements, providing rehabilitation advice, developing rehabilitation plans and educating all DOC staff on Injury Management.
I commenced working for the NZ Forest Service in 1979 in Rotorua, after finishing high school. I worked in the Stores and Purchasing section (now known as Procurement). I transferred to Whaka Forest, just south of Rotorua, in a junior administration role, then back to the regional payroll team in Rotorua, before being promoted to a senior administration role at Karioi Forest, based in Ohakune, in 1982. In 1984, I transferred to a District Administration Officer in Whanganui.
In 1987, with the merger of the Public Service Environmental sectors, I transferred into a similar role with the Department of Conservation. 1989 saw a further restructuring, and I succeeded in getting a payroll job until 1997, when I applied for a Training and Human Resources role in Hamilton. In 2007, I transferred to a Senior HR Advisor role in Christchurch, which covered the West Coast and Nelson Marlborough regions.
Another restructuring in 2010, I moved into the Health & Safety Team, and in conjunction with my manager, we started investigating what the ACC Accredited Employer Programme was and how it could be of benefit to the Department. I took on the role of Claims Advisor for the next 2 years before moving back into the general Health & Safety Advisor role and the Occupational Health Advisor role. Have now circled back to Injury Management!
Diana has extensive ACC experience . Having completed a physiotherapy degree she combines clinical understanding with practical insight and empathy to support injured employees within the scope of ACC legislation.
Mickey is a Claims Manager having worked with ACC and IMU, experienced in the coordination of rehabilitation and application of legislation related to injury management and compensation. She has a background in Sports and Recreation, bringing a practical understanding of physical health and wellbeing, and is an avid netball player.
Kim Hawe, Manager of the NZTA Driver Safety team.
Driver Safety is the team that receives the medical reports for assessment. Kim has worked at NZTA for 11 years, 8 of them in the Medical team.
Mark Pugin, Principal Advisor in the NZTA Driver Safety team.
Mark has a background in Nursing particularly in Psychiatric and Psychogeriatric Nursing. He has worked for NZTA for 25 years, primarily in the Medical team.
Clinical Lead, OTRS/Geneva
Craig Harington is a Clinical Lead at OTRS/Geneva and a registered occupational therapist with over 24 years of experience. His diverse clinical background includes work in burns and plastics, hand therapy, spinal cord rehabilitation, and serving on the medical panel with Veterans Affairs’ New Zealand. For the past 12 years, Craig has specialised in transport and driving assessments, supporting individuals with medical and cognitive conditions to navigate fitness-to-drive evaluations.
At this conference, Craig will present on Occupational Therapy Driving Assessments, outlining the assessment process and key factors for consideration—particularly the on-road component. His presentation draws on extensive clinical experience and evidence-based practice to highlight the importance of structured, real-world evaluation in driving assessments.
Sheree is a Registered Comprehensive Nurse who was born and raised in Southland and is the founder of Occ Health South Ltd.
In addition to occupational health Sheree has nursing experience in various areas including medical, surgical and nursing education. Sheree is the Clinical Manager at Occ Health South, she enjoys spending time with her family (husband, 2 x 16 year olds, 1 x 12 year old), and getting out and about in the fresh air including multisport and adventure racing.
Sheree is a member of the New Zealand Occupational Health Nurses Association and ANZSOM, and is on the HASANZ register.
Dr Chris Rumball is qualified as both a Specialist Pain Medicine Physician and a Specialist in Occupational & Environmental Medicine and is Director of Australis Medical. Since commencing work in Christchurch in 2010, he has focused on complex pain and vocational rehabilitation cases, working in close collaboration with the broader team in the community. He trained in pain medicine at Burwood Pain Management Centre.
Dr Rumball has an academic background, with a PhD in the area of developmental origins of health and disease, a Master’s in Bioscience Enterprise from Cambridge University and has consulted in the area of translational medicine. He works in healthcare software as Clinical Lead for Sense Medical in their development of the Cortex iOS application, which supports interdisciplinary care teams, and was the winner of the 2018 NZHIT Innovation Award.
Lee Gardiner graduated as a physiotherapist in 1981 and has worked since in pain management and occupational health both in Australia and New Zealand. She has an advanced practitioner status in Occupational Health physiotherapy, a post graduate Diploma in Rehabilitation through Otago University and completed Masters levels papers in related topics. Lee also works as a mindfulness practitioner and breathing practitioner (Bradcliff licensed) and has done training in mindfulness based somatic psychotherapy and other trauma and psychology informed care.
Lee returned to New Zealand in 1992 and set up Health Management Consultants Ltd which delivered multidisciplinary injury prevention and rehabilitation services to employers, local and national government agencies, ACC and private insurers.
She now works as a rehabilitation consultant in Taranaki and also works part time in the Persistent Pain programme at Taranaki Base Hospital.
She has been a guest lecture at Otago University on the post-graduate Occupational Health Physiotherapy programme and an expert advisor to HDC on occupational health physiotherapy.
Lee was made a Life Member of Physiotherapy New Zealand in 2024.
Her main interests include empowerment and wellness of people through identifying the drivers for persistent pain and disability, and developing and delivering innovative techniques for injury prevention, improved resilience and optimising quality of life.
