Íæż½ã½ã

Governance

Leading our College

Íæż½ã½ãis governed by a nine-member Board who are the directors of the College. The Board manages the financial, legal and business operations of the organisation and is supported in its activities by the Council and a range of committees.

BOARD

ORGANISATION STRUCTURE

Our guiding principles

CONSTITUTION

REGULATIONS

CODE OF CONDUCT

Portrait of Dr Debbie Nisbet against a purple background

Council and committees

The Íæż½ã½ãCouncil has general oversight of the policy and strategic planning of the College and meets three times a year (generally in March, July, and November) at College Place in Melbourne, Australia.

The Council comprises the members of the Board, 19 Fellows representing each State and Territory of Australia and Aotearoa New Zealand, two regional Fellows, the Board, the Immediate Past-President, one MÄori Fellow, the Chair of the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Women’s Health Committee, the Chair of He Hono WÄhine, the Chair of the Trainees’ Committee, and a Community representative. Non-voting members include the Dean of Education, Dean of Policy & Research, Deputy Chairs (Australia and Aotearoa New Zealand) of the Trainees’ Committee, a Subspecialties Committee representative, and a representative of the National Association of Specialist Obstetricians and Gynaecologists (NASOG).

The Thirteenth Íæż½ã½ãCouncil took office at the College Annual General Meeting held on 15 November 2023. The Council will serve a two-year term until November 2025.

Members of the 13th Íæż½ã½ãCouncil


Members of Council
PresidentDr Gillian Gibson
Vice-PresidentA/Prof Boon Lim
Dr Susan Fleming
Dr Nisha Khot
Board DirectorDr John Regan
Dr Michael Rasmussen
A/Prof Jared Watts
Board Director, Associate Procedural or Advanced Procedural member (or equivalent)Dr Martina Mende
Board Director, IndependentMs Julie Hamblin
Councillor resident in Australian Capital TerritoryDr Elizabeth Gallagher
Councillors resident in New South WalesA/Prof Amanda Henry
Dr James Brown
Dr Mark Ruff
Prof Thierry Vancaillie
Councillors resident in Northern TerritoryDr Kasia Siwicki
Councillor representing MÄori Fellows resident in Aotearoa New ZealandDr Angela Beard
Councillors resident in Aotearoa New ZealandDr Emma Jackson
Dr Per Kempe
Councillors resident in QueenslandDr Elisha Broom
Dr Kathryn Saba
Dr Samantha Scherman
Councillors resident in South AustraliaDr Magda Halt
Dr Aimee Woods
Councillor resident in TasmaniaDr Frank Clark
Councillors resident in VictoriaDr Jenny Dowd
Dr Pallavi Desai
Dr Marilla Druitt
Dr Victoria Carson
Councillors resident in Western AustraliaDr Anna Clare
Dr Uchechukwu Nwangwu Ijeneme
Councillors representing Regional FellowsDr Adam Bush
Dr Romany Erwin
Immediate Past-PresidentDr Benjamin Bopp
Chair, Trainees CommitteeDr Sophie Doherty
Chair, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Women’s Health CommitteeDr Marilyn Clarke
Chair, He Hono WÄhineDr Leigh Duncan
Community RepresentativeTessa Kowaliw
Representatives (non-voting)
Dean of EducationProfessor Ian Symonds
Dean of Research and PolicyProfessor Cynthia Farquhar
NASOG RepresentativeA/Prof Gino Pecoraro
Subspecialties Committee Representative(shared by Subspeciality Committees Chairs)
Trainees Committee Representative
(Deputy Chair, Australia)
Dr Estelle Blair-Holt
Trainees Committee Representative
(Deputy Chair, New Zealand)
Dr Steven Knights
College staff (non-voting)
Chief Executive OfficerVase Jovanoska
Lead, Executive SupportSue Carey
Administrative Assistant, Executive OfficeAnnabel Scott

Committees and working groups

The functions and activities of the Íæż½ã½ãBoard and Council are supported by around 70 committees and working parties, which meet regularly and make recommendations to the Íæż½ã½ãBoard on a range of matters pertaining to women’s health.


Elections

Current elections

Casual Vacancy Election of Trainees’ Committee for the Thirteenth Council


Second Call Casual Vacancy Call for Nominations

As the number of nominations received was less than the vacancies for the following position, a second casual vacancy call for nominations will be made in accordance with section 2.9 of the Election of Íæż½ã½ãTrainees’ Committee Members Policy and Procedure for the following position to be elected to the Trainees’ Committee for the remainder of the term of the Thirteenth Íæż½ã½ãCouncil, to take office from their election until November 2025. Second call casual vacancy call for nominations will open at 10:00 am AEDT on Wednesday, 20 November 2024 and will close at 12.00 pm AEDT Wednesday, 11 December 2024.

FÍæż½ã½ãTraining Program

Aotearoa New Zealand (South Island) – One (1) Trainee Representative

This election will be run in accordance with the following policy and procedure:



If you have any queries regarding this election, please contact:

Laura Le, Governance & Legal Officer
Email: elections@ranzcog.edu.au

Previous elections

Results

Casual Vacancy Election for the Maternal Fetal Medicine (CMFM) Subspecialty Committee
CMFM Trainee RepresentativeDr Amanda Lazzaro
Casual Vacancy Election for Íæż½ã½ãCouncil
Councillor resident in South AustraliaDr Aimee Woods

Timetable

The timetable for the 2025 election timetable is currently being reviewed and will be developed in accordance with the Constitution, Regulations, or Election Policy.


Policies and procedures

View all College policies and procedures.


Executive Leadership Team

The Executive Leadership Team (ELT) are integral to College governance. They meet weekly to determine matters, or make recommendations to the CEO and Board, regarding the direction and operations of the College. 

Meet our ELT

Vase Jovanoska

Chief Executive Officer

MBA, MHSM, BA (Accounting)

Vase’s corporate experience extends more than 22 years across the corporate and not-for-profit sectors. In addition to her tertiary qualifications, Vase has also completed the Executive Program in Leading for Strategic Change with Melbourne Business School, the Women’s Executive Leadership Program and Negotiations Strategies Program with Yale University. She is a graduate member of the Australian Institute of Company Directors, a qualified CPA, and a Fellow of the Institute of Managers and Leaders, Australia, and New Zealand.

Sudi Sekhar

Deputy CEO and Executive Director, Innovation, Learning and Quality Assurance

Sudi has over 14 years’ experience across tertiary, not-for-profit and health sectors, and includes strategy development and implementation, project management, strategic partnerships, business development, change management and client services.

Sudi holds a Master of Business Administration, Master of International Business, and a Bachelor of Chemical Engineering. He is a member of the Australian Institute of Company Directors as well as the Fundraising Institute of Australia. Sudi also holds an Agile Practitioner (AgilePM) qualification.

Daniel Petkovski

Executive Director, Operations

Daniel is responsible for leading the Operations Department at RANZCOG, which includes overseeing business units such as People and Wellbeing (HR), Information Technology, Facilities, Diversity and Belonging, and the Training Support Unit.

In his role, Daniel drives strategic initiatives to enhance internal operations, foster a diverse and inclusive workplace, and support the delivery of RANZCOG’s core business of education and training.

Daniel is a member of the Australian HR Institute (AHRI) and holds a Bachelor of Business (Human Resource Management). His career encompasses experience within community health, the not-for-profit sector, and the commercial sector.

Catherine Cooper

Executive Director, Aotearoa New Zealand and Global Health

Catherine leads the Aotearoa New Zealand Office of Íæż½ã½ãand the Global Health Unit, working closely with Te KÄhui Oranga Å Nuku, He Hono WÄhine and the staff team. She has a background of many years in management roles in the New Zealand public service, and not-for-profit and membership organisations. Catherine also has governance experience, chairing school Boards, as well as a Masters in management and a BA in psychology and education.

Stephen White

Executive Director, Education

Stephen is responsible for the Education activities of the College, encompassing curriculum development, training program operations, examinations, accreditation, evaluation, trainee selection and SIMG assessment. With an Honours degree in English Studies, Stephen worked in academic publishing for eight years in the UK before moving to Australia. He then spent 11 years in the vocational education and training sector, before shifting into the specialist medical college world. Stephen worked on strategic education and curriculum development for ANZCA before joining Íæż½ã½ãin early 2020.

Michelle Zhang

Executive Director, Finance, STP and Risk

Michelle is a certified practising accountant (CPA) with more than 15 years’ experience in financial and management accounting, project management and data analysis. As the Head of STP, Finance and Risk, Michelle manages several government funded programs and work closely with project managers on various projects as well as oversees workforce related activities. Michelle has completed the Master of Professional Accounting (MPA).

Gagan Cheema

Executive Director, Education Development

Gagan is responsible for driving strategic initiatives related to the education development activities. These include development of curricula, assessments, learning resources, CPD and evaluation. Gagan holds a Diploma of Training Design and Development and a Master of Educational Leadership. Over the years, Gagan’s dedication to medical education has led her to oversee the development of numerous training programs for the Australian healthcare workforce and educational resources for health professionals and patients. She possesses extensive expertise in women’s health and is a strong women’s health advocate. With a Master of Nutrition and Dietetics from the University of Canberra, Gagan is also a qualified dietitian and worked for over a decade as an Accredited Practising Dietitian (APD), specialising in chronic disease prevention and management before immersing herself completely into medical education.


Independent External Reviewer

The Independent External Reviewer (IER) provides independent oversight of the College’s complaints and whistleblower processes and seeks to ensure concerns can be raised and issues addressed fairly without fear of reprisal or retribution.

The Independent External Reviewer is an independent non-member and non-College staff member, appointed for the term of the Íæż½ã½ãCouncil.

Responsibilities

Investigate and determine applications for review of complaints referred by the College or directly submitted to the IER, including bullying, discrimination and sexual harassment complaints;

Investigate and determine disclosures referred by the College or directly submitted to the IER under the WhistleBlower Policy;

Liaise and provide instruction and guidance to disputing parties, including the complainant and the respondent in relation to the external review process;

Write clear and logical decisions setting out the basis for the decision, relevant findings of fact and the material on which those findings were based;

Work closely but independently with the College Chief Executive Officer (CEO) and governance staff working within the Office of the President and CEO to provide guidance on the independent external review processes;

Build and maintain collaborative working relationships with internal stakeholders and provide support relating to or arising out of the external review process;

Provide relevant process improvement recommendations to the Board on complaints and whistleblower processes;

Conduct a review of all the complaints and whistleblower disclosures and provide a report to the Board, annually or as requested;

Conduct a review of processes relating to reconsideration, review or appeal and provide a report to the Board, annually or as requested;

Act in accordance with the Code of Conduct;

Act in accordance with all relevant laws, regulations and policies governing complaints and whistleblower processes.

Meet our IER

Ms Candy Caballero was appointed as Independent External Reviewer on 11 May 2023.

Ms Caballero has worked for more than 20 years as a lawyer and public servant in trade and commercial law, contracts and procurement, administrative law and regulatory practices. Registered to practise law in California and Victoria, she is also a member of the Governance Institute of Australia and the Institute of Community Directors. 

She has a particular interest in complaints handling and the identification and management of systemic risks and emerging issues through complaints data analysis. She has worked in the regulation of company directors, health professionals, hospitals and architects.

Contact our IER

If you are submitting a whistleblower disclosure, or you are a member of the College making a complaint, you can contact the IER by sending an email to ier@ranzcog.edu.au or completing the form on the Feedback, Compliments and Complaints page as per the relevant policies listed below.

For any questions regarding relevant policies and processes, you can contact the Governance team by sending an email to governance@ranzcog.edu.au.

RELATED POLICIES AND PROCEDURES

Bullying, Harassment and Discrimination Policy
This policy should be read in conjunction with the supporting Bullying, Harassment and Discrimination Resource Guide.
Whistleblower Policy
Íæż½ã½ãstrives to operate with a culture of ethical and appropriate corporate behaviour in all…


Contact

For general governance enquiries, please contact:

Email: governance@ranzcog.edu.au

If you have any queries in relation to Íæż½ã½ãelection processes, please contact:

Phone: +61 3 9412 2920
Email: elections@ranzcog.edu.au

ADDRESS
Djeembana
1 Bowen Crescent
Naarm (Melbourne)
Victoria 3004 Australia


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