Connecting, celebrating and developing women leaders across Australia’s health sector. A national platform for women at all levels to connect, share ideas and enhance their leadership skills.
Summit overview
The National Health Sector Women’s Leadership Summit is a major annual event for women at all levels to connect, share ideas and build their leadership skills. Created by Australia’s leading authority on women’s leadership, Women & Leadership Australia, the Summit has been developed in consultation with a broad range of stakeholders across the industry.
Taking place on International Women's Day, the aim of the Summit is to contribute to the development of resolute and effective women leaders through skills development, expert advice and strategic industry based networking. The 2018 Summit will provide a unique opportunity to learn from an unparalleled group of female leaders from on the ground front-line managers to inspirational executive decision makers.
This significant annual event represents a key national development platform for women leaders involved in a wide range of organisations related to the field of health and medical care. Drawing together the sector's most respected practitioners and thought leaders, the Summit aims to celebrate the role of women as well as equip participants with the skills, confidence and connections to consolidate their skills and plan for future career success.
Supporting leadership equality and excellence
During the event, participants will hear from a number of inspirational health sector speakers about their leadership/career journeys and the key elements that have contributed to their success. Armed with this valuable insight, participants will identify their own unique gifts and talents and begin to create their personal brand and message.
Inspiration and insight
Flourishing women
Communication, presence and influence
The National Health Sector
Women's Leadership Summit
Annette Holian
Consultant Orthopaedic and Trauma surgeon
Judith Kiejda
Assistant General Secretary, NSW Nurses and Midwives’ Association
Libby Lyons
Director, Workplace Gender Equality Agency
Kellie Wilkie
Sport Physiotherapist & Director of BODYSYSTEM Physio
Vickie Kaminski
Chief Executive Officer,
SA Health
Dr Ruth McNair
University of Melbourne
Event speakers
Conference details
Venue: RACV City Club 501 Bourke St, Melbourne VIC 3000
Dates: Thursday 8th March 2018
Start/Finish: Attendee registration will commence at 08:45
Conference sessions will conclude at 17:10
Anne Carey
Medical Warrior, Nurse, WA Australian of the Year 2016
Suzi Finkelstein
Consultant & Executive Coach
Jessica Rowe OA
Journalist, Columnist, Television Presenter
and Author
Patrice O’Brien
Workplace Engagement Manager, beyondblue
Dr Christine Dennis
CEO, The Australian Council on Healthcare Standards
Katrina Lewis
Associate Director of Nursing, Practice Development, Alfred Hospital
Thursday 8th March 2018, RACV City Club Melbourne












Suzi Finkelstein
Consultant & Executive Coach
With over twenty years of leadership development experience, Suzi brings a wealth of knowledge to her role as Summit Facilitator and Panel Moderator. Over her career, she has built a strong reputation for delivering exceptional outcomes with a particular focus on transforming the performance of leaders and their teams. As a Consultant and Executive Coach, Suzi has worked across all levels of leadership, from aspiring leaders to senior executives at many of Australia's most highly regarded organisations. Suzi has an informed grasp of the conditions women face in the workforce today gained from working with thousands of women across Australia in her capacity as Head of School, Women & Leadership Australia, between 2012 and 2015.
Resilience
Summit themes
Many health sector organisations have made good progress in support of their female leaders however, what is needed now is to look beyond the current status quo and ask how can we support women to enable themselves to truly flourish in their environment. This theme will consider the extent to which both organisational and personal elements need to align in order for women to truly flourish. We will also consider what the key enablers in the health care industry are.
In the health care sector multiple stakeholders and channels means effective communication is imperative and can have far reaching consequences. As leaders it is important we understand our own communication style and the impact of this style on others. It is also critical that we understand communication at an interpersonal, departmental, and organisational level so as to be able to communicate key organisational objectives effectively.
View full agenda
In service led industries such as health care, our ability to overcome challenges whilst remaining engaged and effective can and does have very real implications for patient care. Personal and professional resilience is not only about strength through adversity but the ability to grow and adapt as a result of disruption. In this way we learn to move forward stronger than before.
Guest speaker organisations
Development Session

Conference facilitator and panel moderator