Palliative Care Council Members
Dr Kate Grundy (Chair)
Dr Grundy is a Consultant Physician in Palliative Medicine at Christchurch Hospital, Canterbury District Health Board (1999-present). She is a Clinical Senior Lecturer at Christchurch School of Medicine (University of Otago) and has been Chair of the Palliative Care Council of New Zealand since 2008. Dr Grundy completed a Bachelor of Medicine and Bachelor of Surgery at Birmingham Medical School in the UK (1989) and in 1999 was awarded Fellowship of the Royal Australasian College of Physicians (RACP). In 2000 she was awarded Fellowship of the Australasian Chapter of Palliative Medicine (AChPM). From 2006-2009 Dr Grundy was the President of the AChPM and until 2009 was the Palliative Medicine Representative on the New Zealand Medical Council. She is a member of the Christchurch Hospital Mortality Review Committee and regularly contributes to work conducted locally and nationally on issues relating to Palliative Care and End of Life Care. She represents Hospital Palliative Care New Zealand on the Palliative Care Council.
Dr Carol McAllum
Dr McAllum is a palliative medicine specialist working at Hawke’s Bay Hospital and Cranford Hospice (2007 – present). She is an honorary senior lecturer in palliative care with the University of Auckland (2005 – present). She sits on the Palliative Care Council (since 2008) as the elected member of the Australian and New Zealand Society of Palliative Medicine (ANZSPM), of which she has been a member since 1998. Dr McAllum completed a Bachelor of Medicine and Bachelor of Surgery at Sydney University, Australia (1978). She has been in New Zealand since 1979. She became a Member (1986) then a Fellow of the Royal New Zealand College of General Practitioners (1996). In 1999 she was awarded a Master of General Practice (Otago), and in 2002 a Master of Palliative Care (Flinders). She became a Fellow of the Australasian Chapter of Palliative Medicine (AChPM) in 2002. With a background of 16 years in general practice (rural communities), and palliative care since 1996 in metropolitan, urban and rural New Zealand, she continues to work in palliative care in the community, hospice and hospital settings.
Karyn Bycroft
Karyn Bycroft is a Nurse Specialist, and Nurse Practitioner Candidate, in Paediatric Palliative Care based at Starship Children’s Hospital at Auckland District Health Board. She was instrumental in the establishment of the Paediatric Palliative Care Team at Starship Children’s Hospital in 1999. Karyn is a Clinical Lecturer at the University of Auckland and has been a member of the Palliative Care Council of New Zealand, representing Nursing and Paediatrics, since the beginning of 2009. She completed a Diploma of Nursing in 1988 and Masters in Nursing (Honours) from the University of Auckland in 2004. Karyn is on the Board of Trustees for New Zealand Telepaediatric Trust (Video Conferencing) and a founding member since 1999, a member of the Paediatric Society: Paediatric Palliative Care Special Interest Group, and is on the Scientific Committee of the Paediatric Society of New Zealand. Karyn provides support and leadership on paediatric palliative care issues locally, regionally and nationally and has an interest in empowering health professionals (particularly nurses) in the care of children and their families.
Mary Schumacher
Mary Schumacher is Chief Executive of Hospice NZ. She joined Hospice NZ three and a half years ago moving from the role of Chief Executive at Mary Potter Hospice – a role she held for 10 years. Mary holds a Masters in Social Work and previously managed community, rest home and private hospital services for older people. She represents Hospice New Zealand on the Palliative Care Council.
Dr David Wilson
Dr Wilson trained in London and qualified in 1978. He has been a rural/remote GP in Whitianga since 1991, prior to that spending two years teaching medicine in the islands of Micronesia, funded by the University of Hawaii. Dr Wilson trained as a GP in England, with a three year gap working a VSO volunteer in the Highlands of Papua New Guinea. His interests include rural/remote Primary Health Care, travelling and spending time with his family. Dr Wilson is currently secretary of the Rural General Practice Network, and has been a member of the Waikato area After-hours Committee. He was nominated to the Palliative Care Council by the Royal New Zealand College of General Practitioners to represent General Practice and the rural sector.
Kate Gibb
Kate Gibb is a Registered Nurse and is Facility Manager of George Manning House in Christchurch. Kate has worked in aged care since 1997, graduating with a Bachelor of Nursing in 2004. She worked as a Staff Nurse in Assessment, Treatment and Rehabilitation of older adults at The Princess Margaret Hospital, then in 2007 returned to residential aged care, initially as Clinical Coordinator before moving to her current role at George Manning House in 2008. Kate completed a Post Graduate Diploma in Health Sciences in 2008, focusing on gerontology nursing and nursing management, and has been a speaker locally and nationally in nursing forums and educational settings on gerontology nursing since 2005. Kate has been nominated by Nursing Council of New Zealand to represent generalist nursing, particularly aged residential care, on the Palliative Care Council. She also represents residential aged care on the Canterbury Palliative Care Network, and on the Centre for Post-Graduate Nursing Studies Gerontology Reference Group, University of Otago, Christchurch.
Bob Fox
Bob Fox is the consumer representative on the Palliative Care Council, recently retired after seven years with the Royal New Zealand College of General Practitioners, where he was Communications Manager. A former newspaperman, his career is based in journalism, starting with the Evening Post in Wellington. Bob was Editor of the national Sunday paper the New Zealand Times, which later morphed into the Sunday Star-Times. Following the death of his first wife at Te Omanga Hospice in 1997, Bob served on the Hospice’s advisory committee for some years. He also represented consumers on the Palliative Care Advisory Committee that recommended the setting up of the Palliative Care Council.
Ranei Wineera
Ranei Wineera, Ngati Toa, Nga Puhi, is currently General Manager, Primary Care Wellington and Wairarapa, at Compass Health. This role supports the primary care sector to ensure contract negotiations, contract compliance and business development across 63 medical practices. Ranei’s previous experience includes being Manager of Tumai mo te Iwi PHO in Porirua, and working in the Quality Teams and Maori Health Unit within a hospital setting. She has experienced whanau death from cancer with whanau members using palliative care services at home and within the rest home setting. Ranei was born in Porirua and educated in Wellington and Hamilton. She has two sons who keep life interesting and fun!
