Whadjuk / Ballardong Noongar Elder Freda Ogilvie is a retired bachelor educated teacher, a board member of the Community Arts network and Ruah Community Services, a volunteer with SILVER CHAIN, and a foster carer with MACKILLOP FC. Driven by her strong interest in education and the strategic plan for WA Public Schools, she has been involved in educating and developing strategies and programs for students from diverse linguistic, cultural, religious and socioeconomic backgrounds. Fredall has worked in policy development to enhance early childhood education and care within the Aboriginal community. She has taken part in national forums on early childhood education, as well as contributed to Aboriginal early childhood programs in the Northern Territory and Western Australia and participated in the National Early years Learning Framework.

Alexis started working in the HIV sector in 2000 in South Africa before moving to Australia in 2008. He has remained passionate about public health and the role social enterprise plays in enabling equity, choice and access of healthcare, free of stigma and discrimination, as basic human rights. Alexis has held senior roles in both the private and not for profit sector.

Dr Marisa Gilles is a Public Health Physician and Director of Public Health Medicine at WA Country Health Service. With 30 years’ rural experience, extensive work with Aboriginal communities, and strong epidemiology, research and data skills, she has published 32 papers and champions partnership approaches to reduce rural–metropolitan health inequities.

Rebecca is the CEO of HepatitisWA, and a member of the Hepatitis Australia Board. She brings over 20 years’ experience in the for-purpose health sector in both executive and board director roles, including positions at Sexual Health Quarters, Health Consumers’ Council WA and the Centre for Women’s Safety and Wellbeing.

Richard brings over 25 years in community services, beginning in HIV care before leading Needle and Syringe Programs and events. As AIVL’s National BBV Programs and Operations Lead, he draws on lived experience with HIV and Hepatitis C, advocating for health, equity, and the rights of people who use drugs.

A/Prof Thomas Tu leads the Hepatitis B research group at the Westmead Institute for Medical Research and is a world leader Hepatitis B virology. Drawing on lived experience of hepatitis B, he is committed to translational research that improves outcomes for affected communities.

Lucy Clynes is the CEO of Hepatitis Australia - the peak community organisation to progress national action on issues of importance to people affected by hepatitis B and hepatitis C. Lucy has extensive peak body governance experience and a track record of building strategic partnerships to achieve policy and funding outcomes. She was previously a practicing lawyer and held policy positions in both state and federal government, including serving as Deputy Chief of Staff to a government minister.

Cherie is a passionate healthcare professional who has been working in the HIV, Sexual Health, and Viral Hepatitis sector for over a decade. Her large portfolio of work spans a range of government, non-government, research and healthcare settings. As well as being a practicing clinical nurse Cherie specialises in teaching, presenting and interactive facilitation as well as providing operational analysis and policy review for healthcare settings to identify system gaps, opportunities and funding pathways.

Dr Phill Read is the Director of Sexual Health and Blood Borne Virus Services in South Eastern Sydney Local Health District, NSW. He is a member of several NSW Blood Borne Virus advisory committees, has participated in numerous hepatitis C research studies spanning prevention, testing, and care, and is a Conjoint Professor at the Kirby Institute, UNSW Sydney.

Credentials: RN, MIPH Kindness Bondezi is a Clinical Nurse Consultant at Storr Liver Centre, Westmead Hospital and currently leads the nursing team that is involved in many nurse led models of care that advocate for patient centre approaches to liver health across Western Sydney Local Health District.

Julie is an ‘essential NPC’ and outreach clinician within a peer-based harm-reduction service, providing BBV, sexual health and opportunistic primary care across metropolitan and regional communities. Her work centres on care that adapts to people, not people to systems, driven by a passion for equity and questionable amounts of coffee.

As a lived-experience peer worker at PBHRWA for ten years, Peta has designed and implemented peer-education projects and worked in mobile health clinics. Currently, Peta’s main role is Overdose Prevention, however she continues to work in peer-education, delivers workforce development training to other agencies and guest lectures to universities.

Kyle is a Programs Manager at Hepatitis NSW and has been working in the blood borne virus sector for well over a decade focusing on hepatitis B, peer programs, and innovative outreach testing models. He is passionate about equitable healthcare, meeting people where they’re at, and meaningful community engagement.

Orlaith is a GP working at The Deen Clinic, Hepatitis WA. She has a strong focus on viral hepatitis and supporting marginalised populations with a focus on primary care. She is committed to delivering compassionate, evidence-based healthcare, and improving access to screening and treatment, and advocating for equitable health outcomes. She is an avid beekeeper.

Jessamy is a GP working at the Aboriginal Medical Service Derbarl Yerrigan in Perth. She has an interest in viral hepatitis and has helped improve care options, such as through an MDT with a tertiary hepatology team.

Chris Wallis is a Nurse Practitioner with Hepatitis Australia and West Moreton Prison Health Services (South East QLD). He is currently working on a 12-month pilot project to deliver a nurse-led, telehealth service for rapid access to Hep C treatments across Australia, which aims to remove structural barriers and tackle stigma for people living with Hep C.

Professor Jessica Howell MBBS(Hons) FRACP PhD MSc(Epi) PGDip(PH) FGESA is a gastroenterologist/ hepatologist, NHMRC Principal Research Fellow and Head of the Hepatitis B and Liver Cancer research group in the Department of Gastroenterology, St Vincent’s Hospital Melbourne/ University of Melbourne and Burnet Institute. She is also Chair, Gastroenterology Society of Australia (GESA) Liver Faculty (2023-2027). She combines clinical, basic science and public health expertise in translational research projects in liver cancer and viral hepatitis, focused on marginalized populations. She currently leads several multi-centre studies in liver disease epidemiology, rapid point-of-care diagnostics and biomarker development in viral hepatitis and liver cancer.

Rebecca is a public health researcher and Deputy Head of Justice Health at Burnet Institute. Her work focuses on improving health outcomes for people involved in the criminal legal system, particularly at the intersection of alcohol and other drug use, infectious diseases and health systems reform. She leads and collaborates on major national studies focused on hepatitis C elimination, prison health and transitional care, with a strong emphasis on equity, lived experience and real-world implementation.