Australasian College of

Physical Scientists and Engineers in Medicine

I was the General Manager (CEO Equivalent) for ACPSEM

I reported directly to the Board. I held this position from December 2011 until May 2017. Please scroll down for more information about ACPSEM, my responsibilities and some of our achievements during my time as GM.

About ACPSEM

ACPSEM is the peak professional body for medical physicists, biomedical engineers and radiopharmaceutical scientists in Australia and New Zealand. Its mission is to advance services and professional standards in these fields to the benefit of the Australian community. It is a member-based association, operating as a Company Limited by Guarantee, with more than 700 members in May 2017.

ACPSEM members work in diagnostic and therapeutic areas, most notably in medical imaging, radiation therapy and nuclear medicine, and increasingly in fields such as cardiology and gastroenterology. They are primarily concerned with the quality, safety and effectiveness of patient services involving advanced medical equipment, particularly with any form of medical radiation. Many work in radiation protection in hospital settings, while others are leading and providing quality control for medical research into improved technologies, techniques and treatments.

ACPSEM is the education, training, certification and registration body for these professionals in Australia and New Zealand. ACPSEM members set the standards for practice to ensure the safety of patients and the public. We designed Training, Education and Assessment Programs, as well as continuing professional development opportunities to ensure qualified practitioners maintained currency with modern developments and new technology. We provided eLearning support and other education resources, and conducted all examinations. We approved supervision and training arrangements for all clinical training through departmental accreditation, and accredited Universities offering postgraduate degrees in Medical Physics. We organised the Annual Scientific Meeting featuring leading international clinical and research experts.

We worked cooperatively with many bodies, advising on professional and quality standards; patient safety; workforce and training requirements; practices to improve the utilisation and introduction of medical imaging and therapy technology and techniques; patient dosimetry; Medicare benefit items; equity in the professions; increasing the attraction of professionals into science professions; and the role of science in medical fields. We developed strong relationships with many organisations, including the Australian Radiation Protection and Nuclear Safety Agency (ARPANSA), The Royal Australian and New Zealand College of Radiologists (RANZCR), The Australian Institute of Radiography (AIR), The Australian Department of Health and the New Zealand Ministry of Health, the Australian Academy of Science and Institute of Physics and regulatory bodies.

There were up to 9 staff members and an annual turnover in excess of AUD $1.5 million.

Learn More about ACPSEM

My Role

As General Manager for ACPSEM, I had overall responsibility guiding the organisation to achieve the vision, mission and strategies set by the ACPSEM Board of Directors.

I asked the team to Delight our Members and this became a key staff value, driving our activities and innovations. As a values-based leader, I initially worked with the Board to define the shared values that link all of the members, stakeholders and staff for ACPSEM, and these were defined as:

We strive together to create the best patient outcomes through the advanced, professional, tested and safe application of science and engineering
We strive to provide a framework and environment to facilitate appropriately qualified physicists carrying out their duties in the best interest of the patients and in line with the code of conduct, including routine clinical tasks, research and innovation, teaching and advancement of the profession and field of medical physics

My responsibilities included:

Operational Leadership, Management and Governance
Staff structures, selection, induction and performance, and talent management
Strategy Development and Implementation
Financial Strategy and Budget Management
Delivery of education, training and development programs including online
Delivery of Certification, Registration and Accreditation services
Project Management, especially strategy and education projects
Strategic relationships, including government relations, stakeholder engagement and partnership development
Communication and Marketing

Our Key Staff Values were:

Delighting our members so they can focus on providing their services to help others
Embracing the passion of assisting people working in medical fields
Constantly seeking ways to make the lives of our members easier and willingness to make suggestions accordingly

Achievements

Oversaw all operations for ACPSEM, including education, training, certification, accreditation and member service delivery, policy and procedure development and implementation, and volunteer contributions.

Governance

Managed the successful constitution review project, culminating in the acceptance of a new and substantially different constitution by unanimous vote at the AGM in November 2015, including providing governance advice and undertaking project management and all communications
Developed and obtained Board approval for all new governance documentation, including: Governance and Directors Duties; Delegations Policy (and financial delegations); Director Recruitment Policy; Standing Committee Guidelines and ACPSEM By-Laws
Managed the successful constitution review and name change project for the ACPSEM Foundation Limited, with the Constitution and name change approved in November 2016, name change registered with ASIC and ACNC, and the new Board recruited and appointed before the 1 April 2017 deadline
Separated the ACPSEM and the ACPSEM Medical Research Foundation Board memberships to ensure both organisations would be governed to their potential
Changed the constitution of the Foundation (now the ACPSEM Foundation Ltd) to enable the introduction of independent Directors, create the potential for future payment of Director fees and establish the basis for future international and national fundraising and operations through compliance with the requirements of the Australian Council for International Development Code of Conduct and requirements
Designed and facilitated the inaugural Board meeting for the ACPSEM Foundation Ltd, including team building, starting the strategy process and approval of the supporting governance documentation

Strategy

Developed and implemented the ACPSEM Strategic Plans for 2012-2015 and 2015-2018, including new statements of ACPSEM values, Director expectations, risk profile and stakeholder relationship
Developed and presented to the Board an analysis of future growth and challenges in Asia for strategic planning, and included findings in government, regulatory and professional submissions
Increased membership from approx. 500 to > 700, including expanding the professional membership base to radiopharmaceutical scientists
Co-Author, Planning for the Best: The Tripartite National Strategic Plan for Radiation Oncology (Australia) 2012-2022
Sourced and project managed the introduction of a new IT and database system, including creating the concept for the new website design

Staff Leadership and Management

Recruited team members based on shared values and removed structural barriers between the roles of staff
Mentored and managed the performance of a culturally diverse team from Asia, Europe, New Zealand and Australia
Introduced Agile planning and operation methods for project work (See Presentation)
Eliminated a 12-month backlog of work required for 3 government agreements when I arrived and managed the team to meet all deliverables, leading to new and expanded government agreements
Increased and identified new opportunities for staff training and development, and arranged for training on new database and IT systems

Education Leadership and Management

Initiated and co-developed the “whole of life” education, training and development framework for members, and oversaw the introduction of virtual classrooms and expansion of web-based educational offerings (See Presentation)
Coordinated an independent international review of ACPSEM certification programs that found the programs were of international standard
Managed the assessment consultancy project with the Australian Council for Educational Research and contributed to assessment design
Oversaw the revamp of ACPSEM university and departmental accreditation policies and procedures, and remodelled supporting systems including application simplification and restructuring of fees
Developed the accepted proposals for ACPSEM and Federal Government support for a new training, education and assessment program for radiopharmaceutical scientists
Oversaw the development and introduction of the first clinical training and certification programs for radiopharmaceutical scientists (commenced in 2016) and contributed to the development of the assessment system
Oversaw the development of the eLearning training program, Online Mammography QA for Radiographers

Innovation, Transition and Change

Oversaw the transition of ACPSEM from mostly a volunteer organisation with secretariat support into a fully professional association, resulting in new governance, Board, Advisory forum and office structures
- Established the structures to allow a smaller Board more focused on governance and sustainability, reduced from 13 to 9 directors
- Redefined the Professional Standards Board and Membership Panel as Board sub-committees to allow for delegation of authority and decision-making, while maintaining Board oversight
- Developed the concept and obtained approval for the establishment of the ACPSEM Advisory Forum to provide guidance on professional matters, enabling the greater levels of Board focus on governance and sustainability
Proposed and had accepted a new funding model with the Australian Government Department of Health that removed barriers and encouraged ACPSEM growth to benefit patients and medical professions, based on funding critical outcomes rather than set staff and specific deliverables
Introduced diversity workshops to the Annual Scientific Meetings to improve equity in the professions and ensure members had the abilities required to utilise the benefits of diversity in the workplace
Proposed and designed process for a major review of ACPSEM Certification and Registration to provide clarity of purpose and clear guidance for ACPSEM professionals
Oversaw the consultation and approval process on the proposals for certification and registration, and drafted the required policies and procedures to implement the major changes
Designed and wrote the member and key stakeholder communications for the Certification and Registration changes
Remodelled the accreditation supporting systems to improve the system from a customer perspective, including application simplification and restructuring of fees to assist with customer budgeting
Worked with consultants from the Australian Council for educational Research on the introduction of assessment-driven learning and remodelling of the Clinical Training Guides
Designed a new website homepage concept, moving away from a traditional information/repository style to a member and stakeholder service model aligned to the way the website is utilised

Relationships & Communication

Improved ACPSEM member and stakeholder communication and developed the ACPSEM presence on social media (See 2013 AGM Presentation)
Developed and presented approved policy submissions to government on health, workforce, taxation, competition, education and medical radiation issues, and initiated ACPSEM involvement in the successful #ScraptheCap campaign involving 50+ Non-Government Organisations
Initiated and contributed to Terms of Reference for a new Peak Imaging Coalition with representation from 5 peak bodies, and member of the Tripartite Committee representing 3 peak bodies
Presented and been a panel member at conferences and meetings for Associations Forum and engaged with other Non-Government Organisation/Association/Not For Profit CEO and Board members

Finance & Infrastructure Management

Created and delivered budgets of > $1.5 million pa, introduced accepted financial KPI, and developed improved financial reporting and procedures
Delivered financial surpluses every year, remaining within budget while providing additional services and maintaining full existing services
Submitted and awarded government grants of > $5 million
Developed and completed tenders for professional conference organisers, travel consultants and IT support
Sourced and established the new office to cater for the expansion of ACPSEM, including all lease negotiations and contractual arrangements for fit-out and IT requirements