SARRAH President
Alison Dymmott is an occupational therapy lecturer, placement education coordinator and researcher at Flinders University. She has predominantly worked clinically in rural areas of South Australia in a range of leadership roles including state-wide project management and policy development. She has specialist skills in rural generalism, paediatrics, rehabilitation and acute care.
Alison’s research interests are in rural health workforce and occupational therapy evidence-based practice. She is currently undertaking her PhD in conjunction with SA Health around rural allied health workforce strategies, specifically the impact of the rural generalist pathway. She has extensive experience educating occupational therapy students and supporting students and educators on placement, she is particularly passionate about co-designing clinical placements that are mutually beneficial for all stakeholders.
SARRAH Vice President
Scott is a Physiotherapist with 12 years of professional experience, predominantly spent in the acute hospital setting in Perth, WA. He is now based in Melbourne, working with The Alfred Hospital as the Allied Health Workforce Unit Manager. In the role he works with the Allied Health leaders across the state public health services to improve Allied Health services through the optimisation of position occupancy and staff growth and development. Prior to this, he worked with the Tasmanian Health Service in allied health workforce recruitment and served as the Physiotherapy Services Manager at a large sub-tertiary hospital in Perth’s Northern Suburbs.
Scott was born and raised in a small dairy and beef farming community in South-West WA, where his parents are still based. Never short on advice, they provide additional perspectives on the contemporary issues faced by the rural population, and what should be done about them! Scott seeks out that connection to community in both his professional and personal life and strives to improve the lives of those around him, especially those who experience disadvantage. He has completed a Master of Health Management at UNSW, and a Graduate Certificate in Mental Health at Monash University.
Director
Michael is a driven and experienced Accounting and Finance professional, who is currently working in Deloitte’s Financial Advisory division in Perth, WA. With over 10 years’ of professional services experience, Michael excels in fostering relationships with executive leadership teams and boards in complex and dynamic periods for their organisation, in order to help drive them towards their intended goals.
Michael specialises in organisational strategy, financial performance and program management. He has delivered a number of significant transactions, supporting separation/ integration program planning, management and execution, strategy development and operational improvement. Michael has worked with broad range of clients (including ASX listed entities, multinational organisations and government), across a variety of industry sectors.
Michael grew up in regional Western Australia, and regular spends time back in rural areas visiting family. He is passionate in advocating that those in rural and regional parts of Australia are afforded fair and reasonable access to high quality Allied Health services, similar to their counterparts in Australia's metropolitan areas.
Michael is a Chartered Accountant, holds a Bachelor of Commerce from the University of Western Australia, and is a professional member of both ARITA and Chartered Accountants Australia and New Zealand.
Director
Ilsa has worked in allied health workforce development, policy and leadership in the Queensland Department of Health, the Northern Area Health Service (QLD) and was the inaugural Program Coordinator of the Bachelor of Physiotherapy program at James Cook University. Through these roles Ilsa has contributed to a large range of state and national rural and remote allied health projects.
Ilsa has extensive experience in allied health rural and remote project and strategy formation/planning and management. She project managed the development of the Allied Health Rural Generalist Pathway in Queensland Health, and in partnership with other state and territory health services, SARRAH and other stakeholder agencies, from 2013 – 2023.
Ilsa has developed or co-developed key allied health workforce resources that are used extensively in Queensland Health and in other agencies and sectors including Allied Health Assistant resources such as the Delegation Framework, Clinical Task Instructions and Foundations of delegation education program; the Skill Sharing Framework; and telehealth resources.
Director
Robyn is a founding member of SARRAH. She has extensive knowledge of the rural allied health sector generally and considerable knowledge of the Allied Health Rural Generalist Pathway. Robyn has held senior management and leadership positions predominantly in public sector health services, and worked in higher education, aged care and private practice, as well as undertaking project officer/management roles mostly relating to rural allied health and the AHRG Pathway.
Director
Jack Seaton is an experienced physiotherapist who has worked across a broad range of clinical settings within the public and private health sectors in metropolitan, regional, rural, and remote areas since graduating from The University of Newcastle in 2015. In 2020, Jack transitioned into academia where he was employed as a Lecturer in Public Health and Tropical Medicine at James Cook University (JCU), Townsville. In this capacity, Jack made a significant contribution to the design, delivery and coordination of innovative public health curriculum for undergraduate allied health students. Always up for a new challenge, Jack recently moved to Newcastle and commenced work with the New South Wales Office of Responsible Gambling as a Senior Project Officer, managing various education and awareness projects aimed at preventing and reducing harm from gambling in at-risk populations, including Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities.
Jack holds an adjunct appointment at JCU, where he remains involved in research that focuses on addressing the barriers to accessing health and disability services in rural and remote Australia. Jack currently serves on the Australian Physiotherapy Association’s National Rural Advisory Council and the Scientific Committee for the 15th National Rural and Remote Allied Health Conference to be held in Mildura, Victoria in 2024.
Director
Laura is a Physiotherapist with 11 years of professional experience working across both public health and Aboriginal Community Controlled Health Services sectors. Laura is passionate about ensuring equitable access to health services for all community members, with a focus on those living in remote and very remote locations. She has been involved in strengthening amputee rehabilitation services, developing Allied Health telehealth services, and in the implementation, monitoring, and evaluation of programs, all of which have been informed by community engagement.
Working in the Northern Territory for an Aboriginal Community Controlled Health Service, Laura is on a continual journey in unlearning and re-learning ways to provide culturally responsive services, guided by Aboriginal governance, Cultural Leaders, and community members. More recently, she has been working in the Health Policy team, preparing submissions to Parliamentary Inquiries, informed by the lived experience of community members.
Director
Hannah is an experienced leader and manager with over 14 years in the NT context, having successfully led teams and projects focused on enhancing services and improving health outcomes for people across the lifespan, in urban, rural, and remote areas. Hannah's background encompasses clinical, operational, and strategic leadership, with a specific focus on innovation, collaboration, and continuous improvement in community aged care and primary healthcare.
"Serving on the SARRAH Board is the chance to make a meaningful contribution to improving allied health services for people living in rural and remote areas. I’m passionate about creating systems and workforce models that make access more equitable, and I see this as an opportunity to bring what I’ve learned in the NT — particularly around service reform and workforce development — to a national table. I’m also excited about the chance to grow personally and professionally...
Most of all, I’m looking forward to working alongside people who share the same commitment to making a difference in rural and remote communities."