Our Team
IF employs a team of highly skilled staff, coming together from a diverse range of backgrounds, experiences and expertise, who contribute to a professional and highly effective organisation.
The Team
Chief Operating Officer, Colin Frick
Colin commenced with the Improvement Foundation in March 2007 and has significant senior management experience. Colin has been responsible for managing large budgets and has experience working within complex organisations with diverse stakeholder involvement.
Principal Clinical Advisor, Dr Dale Ford
Dale is a GP and Partner at a group practice in Hamilton, Western Victoria. He is also Medical Director of Otway Division of General Practice. He helped set up Greater "Green Triangle GP Education and Training" (which is a Regional Training Provider), was the inaugural Chair for the organisation and is currently on the Board.
The Improvement Foundation team are experienced in presenting at large scale workshops, as well as national forums and conferences. IF also has access to a number of experts within primary health and quality improvement. If you would like one of our staff to present at your next workshop, conference, lecture or forum, please contact us.
Senior Management are responsible for managing the following departments of the organisation:
National Program Director, Business Development & Learning, Sarah Wrzeszczynski
Business Development and Learning
P: +61 8422 7465, E: enquiries@improve.org.au
Sarah is currently on maternity leave.
Supporting Sarah in Business Development & Learning are:
- Amanda Taylor, Program Manager
- Teagan Coe, Program Officer
- Amy Markey, Administration Support Officer
National Program Director, Australian Primary Care Collaboratives, Mini Dhillon
Australian Primary Care Collaboratives and E-Collaborative in the 21st Century
P: +61 8422 7475, E: apcc@improve.org.au
The APCC Team consists of Program Managers:
- Bryan Foley
- Donna Bridges
- Alison Konicek, Program Officer
National Director ICT, Julian Flint
Information, Communication Technology
P: +61 8422 7450, E: data@improve.org.au
The ICT team includes:
- Mathew Lewis, Sharepoint Business Analyst
- David Cresp, Sharepoint Business Analyst
- Stacey Muchamore, Sharepoint Business Analyst
- David Taylor, ICT Support Officer
- Sam Livingston, ICT Support Officer
National Program Director, Alison Coughlin
Communications and Marketing
P: +61 8422 7445, E: Rebecca.esteve@improve.org.au
Alison currently manages OCHREStreams, as well as communication and marketing for IF.
The Communications and Marketing team includes:
- Rebecca Esteve, Marketing and Communications Coordinator
- Kirsty Smith, Communications Officer
Manager: Business Services, Andy Dallisson
Administration & Finance
P: +61 8422 7400, E: finance@improve.org.au
Supporting the administration and finance department are:
- Jade Regan, Executive Assistant
- Cassy Valodze, Finance Clerk
- Sherrie Angwin, Finance Clerk
- Rebekah Griffith, Receptionist
Last Updated 09 November 2011
What is the Model for Improvement?
The Model for Improvement provides a framework for developing, testing and implementing changes. It helps to break down a change effort into small, manageable chunks which are then tested to ensure that things are improving and that no effort is wasted. It is always worth remembering that while every improvement is certainly a change, every change is not an improvement.
The Model for Improvement consists of two equal parts; the first part, the “thinking part”, consists of three fundamental questions to guide improvement work:
- What are we trying to accomplish?
- How will we know that a change is an improvement?
- What changes can we make that will result in an improvement?
For more information about the Model for Improvement visit: http://apcc.org.au/about_the_APCC/the_model_for_improvement/
What is the Collaborative Methodology?
Adapted from the Institute of Healthcare Improvement’s Breakthrough Series Collaborative methodology, in the Australian context, the Collaborative methodology is used as a framework for the APCC Program. This methodology has been applied to a wide range of management challenges. Originally applied to healthcare systems in the USA, it has since been adopted in other countries, including the UK, Scotland, Canada and New Zealand.
The Collaborative methodology is proven to be highly effective in achieving large scale systems change and demonstrating measurable outcomes. It provides a generic quality improvement model that can be applied to achieve incremental, rapid and locally relevant improvements across a broad range of clinical and practice business issues.