Mental Health Carers NSW (MHCN) are having an election for the Board for the following positions:

• 3 x Ordinary Board Members

Voting closes next Friday 22 November at 4.00pm.

Election results will be announced at MHCN’s Annual General Meeting on Friday 22 November at 4.40pm.

Only members of MHCN can vote. Members can only vote once. Voting is not mandatory.  Voting is anonymous.

Nominees for Ordinary Board Member – Douglas Holmes

Douglas Holmes is vice president and a founding member of Transforming Australian Mental Health Service Systems (TAMHSS). TAMHSS is a Mental Health think tank set up in Perth in 2009 to allow people interested in system reform to come together and discuss ideas about what issues they would like support with changing the system.   

He was the Carer Peer Network facilitator with the NSW Mental Health Carer Advocacy Network (under contract with Mental Health Carers NSW) from 2020 till May 2024. Douglas has had a long involvement with Association of Relatives and Friends of the Mentally Ill (ARAFMI) on the Central Coast and the Hunter, including as current Chairperson of the Central Coast ARAFMI board and is a long-time member of the Yakkalla Community support group.  

Douglas is the project manager and a volunteer with Super Cro, a charity set up in 2018 to aid people with lived experience of mental health distress through education, advocacy, collaboration, feedback and equal representation. 

Douglas’s foray into the mental health and addictions sector came later in life after a career within the transport industry. His passion to work with mental health and addiction was sparked by a personal journey of lived experience and recovery. He has worked as an adult peer support/advocacy worker and volunteered as a Consumer Leader.  

Douglas was privileged to carry the voice of both Consumers and Carers, to local, regional, and national forums when he was a member of the NSW Consumer Advisory Group Mental Health Inc for 3 years from 1996 to 1999 and then Executive Officer for 6 years from 2000 to 2006. He was also chair of the NSW Consumer Workers Committee, Consumer Participation Officer at St Vincent’s Hospital, Sydney, and a member of TheMHS Learning Network with a focus on supporting the Consumer and Carer pre-conference day prior to the main conference. Douglas lives in Boolaroo as part of Lake Macquarie and enjoys all sports (watching more than participating now) and music and supports people to organise MAD Pride concerts across Australia.  

Nominees for Ordinary Board Member – Matt Floro

Matt Floro is a passionate advocate for mental health care, particularly for older Australians and individuals from culturally diverse backgrounds. Driven by personal experience as the sole carer for his mother, who has schizoaffective disorder and cognitive impairment, and his own background as a recipient of mental health care, Matt has a deep commitment to supporting individuals facing mental health challenges.  

Professionally, Matt is an experienced lawyer with a focus on environmental, planning and climate change law. He is Principal Lawyer at Johnson Legal and previously held the role of Senior Advisor to the NSW Minister for Climate Change, Energy, Environment and Heritage. Matt is also a dedicated volunteer, currently serving as the National President of the Asian Australian Lawyers Association, the national peak body promoting cultural diversity and access to justice for Asian Australian lawyers. 

Matt brings an extensive skill set to the table, including strategic planning, program development, legal expertise, and community networking. His legal and public policy career, which spans over a decade and includes roles across Queensland, Victoria, and New South Wales, is complemented by his undergraduate qualifications in Law and Economics, Master’s degrees in Law and Public Administration, and an ongoing MBA. His accolades, such as the 2022 Australian Young Environmental Lawyer of the Year and inclusion in the Powerhouse Museum’s “100 Climate Conversations”, underscore his contributions to social justice and policy reform. 

As a prospective board member for Mental Health Carers NSW Inc. (MHCN), Matt aspires to give back to the mental health community, apply his skills in the health sector, and learn from leading professionals in the field. His experience with non-profit boards, such as the National Environmental Law Association and Out for Australia Victoria, reflects his strong belief in the power of civil society organisations to drive meaningful change. 

Nominees for Ordinary Board Member – Raj Gopalan

Raj has over 30 years of experience in IT and Telecommunications industry in Australia. He acquired a well-rounded business expertise over the years by performing a variety of roles. He has performed senior roles in marketing, sales, business development, integration consultant, strategy formulations, program/project management, process improvement and operations as well as channel sales and channel development  

Raj has specialised in Indirect Channel area both in IT & Telecommunication sectors and involved in setting up new channels, partner programs, Channel sales, Channel development & process set-up, Channel audit/compliance and commercial operations.   

Raj has worked with leading organisations like Tatas, Fujitsu, and Telstra as well as customers like Castlemaine Tooheys during his corporate career.  

Raj holds an Honours degree in Engineering specialising in Electronics and communications and a Post graduate diploma in Information technology  

Raj also has over 20 years of experience, as a carer, for his daughter with Autism, mental development delay and behavioural disorder issues.  

It has been a long and tough journey for him and provided him with rich experience and insight into mental health system, including hospitals, specialists, respite care, group homes, day programs, various therapies, and NDIS. This lived experience has provided him with a solid background for being a strong advocate for carer’s welfare.  

Raj is passionate about carer’s welfare and believes in continuous improvement of current systems and participates in co-design work at Northern district health and MHCN. He also volunteers with service providers like Sylvanvale and Inala when needed and a regular volunteer with OzHarvest and Meals on wheels.  

Nominees for Ordinary Board Member – Rob Wellman

Rob Wellman is passionate about carer advocacy and his links to MHCN go back 27 years to ARAFMI on the Central Coast.
 
He has a degree in science as well as a diploma in education and worked as a TAFE teach for 25 years when his journey led him to his role as a volunteer carer advocate.
 
Rob has lived experience as a carer for his son for over 25 years and has vast experience navigating the mental health sector including the Mental Health Review Tribunal and NDIS.
 
He has been a Board member with MHCN since 2018 and is passionate about the latest technology in treatments alternative to the medical model, often participating in research and clinical trials.