Social Determinants of Health

Panellists: Cassandra Goldie, Head of Australian Council of Social Service; Warren Mundine, Chair of the Indigenous Advisory Council; Sir Michael Marmot, President of the World Medical Association; Christine Bennett, School of Medicine, The University of Notre Dame; and Deborah Cobb-Clark, Professor of Economics , University of Sydney. -- Cassandra Goldie Dr Cassandra Goldie has been CEO of the Australian Council of Social Service (ACOSS) since July 2010 and has extensive public policy experience in economic and social issues, particularly as they affect people who are on low incomes or disadvantaged. Cassandra has worked both domestically and globally, and in local communities. She was a key leader of 2015’s National Reform Summit with business and union leaders and, in 2014, she was Deputy Chair of the Civil Society20 and Chair of the Global Infrastructure Working Group. She is a regular commentator in mainstream media. In 2015 Cassandra was listed in The Australian Financial Review’s Power List as one of the 15 most powerful people in Australia and one of the Pro Bono’s Impact 25 Most Influential People in the Social Economy in 2014 and 2015. In 2013, she was selected as one of the inaugural Westpac/AFR 100 Women of Influence. She has a PhD from the university of NSW and a Masters in Public Law from University College London. -- Warren Mundine Warren Mundine was born in Grafton, New South Wales. He is from the first Australian nations of Bundjalung and the Gumbaynggirr people and is the former National President of the ALP. He succeeded Barry Jones as President of the ALP, beginning his term in January 28, 2006, and became the first Indigenous Australian to serve as President of an Australian political party. No longer a member of the ALP, Warren is the chair of the Indigenous Advisory Council, established by former Prime Minister Tony Abbott to advise the Government on practical changes to improve the lives of Indigenous people. Warren is Chief Executive Officer of NTSCORP Ltd, a company that assists traditional owners to achieve social justice and promote economic, environmental and cultural development through native title and other avenues. As Chair of the Australian Indigenous Chamber of Commerce, Warren provides national leadership for initiatives to promote economic development and help Indigenous people break the welfare cycle, such as the Australian Employment Covenant and the First Australians Business Awards. Warren has been recognised for his community, government and business achievements by being awarded Doctor of the University at Southern Cross University. He has also been awarded the Centenary Medal for services to the community and local government and the Bennelong Medal for Leadership in Indigenous Affairs. Warren was the ninth of 11 children in his family, eight boys and three girls. He was raised a Catholic. In 1963 the family moved to Sydney and settled in the inner-western suburb of Auburn. After leaving school, he found work as a fitter and machinist and as a sewerage worker, then later went back to night college to earn his Higher School Certificate. Following a job at the Australian Taxation Office, Warren moved to Adelaide, studying at the South Australian Institute of Technology. He now lives in Sydney and has seven children. -- Sir Michael Marmot Professor Sir Michael Marmot, President of the World Medical Association, has been a leading researcher on health inequality issues for more than four decades. He has played a central role in research projects studying health equity and bringing research evidence to bear on policy and practice. His many achievements include chairing the Commission on Social Determinants of Health for the World Health Organization in 2005 which produced the influential Closing the Gap in a Generation report in 2008. Its central conclusion was social injustice is killing on a grand scale. Sir Michael is currently chairing a two-year review of equity and health inequalities in the Americas for the WHO’s Pan American Health Organization. He was commissioned by the British Government to conduct its Strategic Review of Health Inequalities in 2010, and chaired the Breast Screening Review for the NHS National Cancer Action Team. He has won many prestigious prizes and been awarded honorary doctorates from 17 Universities – the first of which was from his Alma Mater, University of Sydney. Sir Michael was educated at Sydney Boys High School, graduated in Medicine at the University of Sydney and has a PhD from the University of California for research into acculturation and coronary heart disease in Japanese Americans. In 2000 Sir Michael was knighted for services to epidemiology and understanding health inequalities. Sir Michael’s lectures, the 57th Boyer Lecture Series, will explore the challenges faced by nations and communities in reducing health inequality. -- Christine Bennett Professor Christine Bennett is a specialist paediatrician and has over 30 years of health industry experience in clinical care, strategic planning, business operations and senior management in the public, private and not-for-profit sectors. In 2013 she was appointed Professor and Dean of the University of Notre Dame’s School of Medicine. She is a Fellow of the Royal Australasian College of Physicians and has an active commitment to, and involvement in, medical professional issues, social policy and medical research. Christine’s professional experience has included being Group Executive and Chief Medical Officer for MBF and the Bupa Health and Care services; CEO of Research Australia; Managing Director of Total Health Enterprise Ltd; Partner in Health and Life Sciences for KPMG Australia; CEO of Westmead Hospital and Community Health Services; General Manager for the Royal Hospital for Women; and Head of Planning in NSW Health. She is an experienced company director and has held many non-executive director roles for private and publicly listed companies, as well as government and charitable organisations. Christine is currently Chair of Research Australia – an alliance of over 170 member organisations promoting health and medical research in Australia and the Sydney Children’s Hospitals Network in NSW. In 2008 Christine was appointed by then Prime Minister Kevin Rudd to be Chair of the National Health and Hospitals Reform Commission that provided advice to governments on a long-term blueprint for the future of the Australian health system and aged care. The commission’s comprehensive final report, with recommendations covering all aspects of health and aged care, was presented to the Government in June 2009. A mother of five children, Christine is passionate about giving all children a healthy start to life; supporting the mental health and wellbeing of young people; addressing the broader determinants of health; educating future doctors and health leaders; promoting healthy ageing and the importance of empowering people to have the central role in their own health and health care decisions. In 2013 Christine was a finalist in NSW for Australian of the Year and was awarded an Officer of the Order of Australia (AO) in the Australia Day 2014 Honours List. The award recognises her distinguished service to medicine and health care leadership as a clinician, researcher and educator, particularly in the fields of child and family health, and social policy. -- Deborah Cobb-Clark Deborah Cobb-Clark is Professor of Economics at the University of Sydney. She is Director of the Program in Gender and Families at the Institute for the Study of Labor (IZA) in Bonn, Germany; a Chief Investigator in the ARC Centre of Excellence for Children and Families over the Life Course; and an elected Fellow of the Academy of Social Sciences in Australia. Deborah earned a PhD in Economics from the University of Michigan (1990). Prior to joining the University of Sydney, she was the Ronald Henderson Professor and Director of the Melbourne Institute at the University of Melbourne. She has also held positions at the US Labor Department, Illinois State University and the Australian National University where she was the founding director of the Social Policy Evaluation, Analysis and Research (SPEAR) Centre. Her research agenda centres on the effect of social policy on labour market outcomes including immigration, sexual and racial harassment, health, old-age support, education and youth transitions. She has published more than four dozen academic articles in leading international journals and is a former co-editor of the Journal of Population Economics.