Jane Abbey
Jane is the Committee’s Presiding Member. The Minister for Education appointed Jane to this position on 24 January 2022. As a barrister, Jane brings extensive legal and advocacy expertise and skill to the work of child death review. She has a keen interest in human rights, domestic violence and Aboriginal issues, and a commitment to the rights and best interests of children and young people. Jane was admitted as a barrister and solicitor in 2001. Her work is predominantly in criminal, worker’s compensation, disciplinary and coronial matters.
Mary Awata
Mary is a Social Worker and a Developmental Educator. Her main focus is in providing care to children/young people/adults with disability and other complex needs including those with exceptional needs and children/young people in residential Out of Home Care. Mary also champions multicultural issues including cultural awareness training, community engagement, education and contributing to research in key issues such as disability.
Carmela Bastian
Carmela is a social work practitioner, researcher and educator. She is a lecturer in Social Work at Flinders University, responsible for the child protection portfolio within social work and the university. She contributes to research projects undertaken by Flinders University’s Social Work Innovation Research Living Space (SWIRLS) focusing on the intersection of domestic and family violence and child protection. Carmela has held senior positions in the Department for Child Protection. She is committed to building social work practice excellence and improving outcomes for children, young people and families who experience complexity.
Mark Fuller
Mark is a general practitioner working both in general practice and for Drug and Alcohol Services SA where he works in a team that regularly deals with the effects of drug and alcohol use on children and young people. He worked for 15 years in an adolescent health service, including with young people in detention. The effects that mental health and drug and alcohol problems have on the lives of young people and their families, and the ways in which these problems may contribute to the death of young people, is of particular interest to him.
Jemma Anderson
Dr Jemma Anderson is a staff specialist currently working in adolescent medicine and paediatric endocrinology with the Women’s and Children’s Hospital and Flinders Medical Centre. Dr Anderson also has experience and knowledge in youth mental health.
Kathy Moar
Kathy is a clinical psychologist whose practice focuses on assessment, diagnosis, support and intervention services for infants, children, adolescents, adults and families. Her career has included work across public health, university, non-government and private practice settings. She is studying towards postgraduate public health qualifications, and continues to work as a clinical psychologist in private practice and education settings. Kathy’s experience and skills in clinical and inter-disciplinary child and family psychology are grounded within a relationship-based and ecological framework, acknowledging the importance of connected systems to support young people. Kathy appreciates how a young person’s individual differences and life stage, as well as their context and experiences, impact on their day-to-day functioning, and she is keen to promote systems that best support young people.
Kurt Towers
Kurt is a proud Wiradjuri man and the i/Chief Aboriginal Health Officer for SA Health, and a registered Aboriginal Health Practitioner. Kurt has extensive experience in the Aboriginal health and wellbeing fields leading executive roles within mental health, aged care and Aboriginal health in various metropolitan and remote settings. As the former vice president of Kidsafe SA he is passionate in leading and supporting strategies to reduce the incidence of unintentional injuries in Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children.
Deirdre White
Deirdre has over 30 years’ experience as a paediatrician. This has involved community paediatrics, acute care paediatrics, child protection and, for the past 10 years, developmental paediatrics at WCH. She has practised in the community and public hospital settings. Her work has also included the teaching of undergraduate medical students and post graduate paediatric trainees as well as sitting on national committees of the Royal Australasian College of Physicians. She has strong interests in equity of care and the ability of services to address this issue at both micro- and macro-systems levels.
Rhiannon Pilkington
Rhiannon is a senior research fellow in the School of Public Health, University of Adelaide, as a part of the BetterStart Health and Development research group led by Professor John Lynch. She is an epidemiologist with expertise in translational research, data analytics, and linked administrative data. Her research focusses on informing how we can ensure every child, young person and family in disadvantaged circumstances receives the support they need. Rhiannon works with government and non-government organisations across Australia, using their data to bring a public health perspective to service design and delivery.
Catherine Turnbull
Catherine Turnbull is the Chief Child Protection Officer for the Department for Health and Wellbeing, South Australia, leading the governance, models of care and practice reforms for Child Protection Services across SA Health. Catherine liaises and consults with health, child protection, human services, education and police colleagues and consumers, Aboriginal services and children, and key stakeholders such as the Commissioner for Children and Young People, the Guardian for Children and Young People in Care, and the Commissioner for Aboriginal Children and Young People. She Co-chairs National Strategy on the Prevention of Child Sexual Abuse Committees, the SA Health and SAPOL’s Joint Investigation Teams Committee and is Chair of the SA Health Child Protection and Policy Board.
Rosie Thewlis
Rosie is a legal practitioner with an extensive background in criminal law and administrative law. She was admitted as a barrister and solicitor in South Australia in 2001.
Rosie has spent the majority of her career in the public service and has worked predominately for the Director of Public Prosecutions conducting criminal prosecutions involving the physical and sexual assault of children. She has also acted as Senior Counsel Assisting the State Coroner. She is currently employed by the Crown Solicitor, where her work includes child protection matters.
Kerry Beck
Kerry has over 30 years’ experience as a Social Scientist and Social Worker. She has held practitioner, management and executive roles across a variety of settings including homelessness, mental health, drug and alcohol, child protection, family preservation and public housing. Kerry’s main focus is on changing systems to reduce barriers, ensure they are working in client centred ways, and in particular better respond to the safety and wellbeing of children as the most vulnerable members of our community. In recent years Kerry has led the reform of South Australia’s Child and Family Support System as the Director of Safer Family Services, in the Department for Human Services, SA. Kerry is the Deputy Presiding member of the inaugural SA Social Workers Registration Board and a Member of the SA Youth Justice, Training Centre Review Board.
