Speakers

NZ Blood Service - Te Ratonga Toto O Aotearoa

Sarah Morley - Chief Medical Officer

The NZBS Transfusion Nurse Specialist and HNZ Clinical Nurse Specialist Team

Suzi Rishworth - Transfusion Nurse Specialist, Dunedin / Otago

Suzi is a Registered Nurse working as part of a multi-centre Transfusion Nurse Specialist (TNS) / Clinical Nurse Specialist team. Suzi joined NZBS in 2003 when they launched the TNS project. Her role rests at the clinical end of the NZBS ‘vein to vein’ philosophy and focuses upon teaching (including under-graduate and post-graduate programmes), auditing (national and local), policy writing, haemovigilance, incident review, surveillance, CQI, liaison and support. Suzi is based in the NZBS Blood Bank at Dunedin Hospital and covers the Otago and Southland region. Her passion is teaching and translating specialty knowledge into manageable and useable fractions to influence change, enhance transfusion practice, and protect patient safety.

Prior to joining NZBS Suzi spent 14 years working predominately within the fields of Oncology, Haematology and Palliative Care both in New Zealand and the UK, and District Nursing in Central London. She undertook post graduate studies in Cancer Care at the University of Manchester, while working at the Royal Marsden Hospital, London, during the 1990s and post graduate clinical teaching papers via the University of Canterbury early 2010s. Suzi is a member of the Australia and New Zealand Society of Blood Transfusion (ANZBST) and during her tenure has been actively involved in various ANZSBT sub-committees.

Christopher Corkery - Transfusion Nurse Specialist, Waikato

I became a Registered CpRN in 1987 following a less than enthusiastic career as an electrician. Working with people was my aim and not fixing machines and crawling in roof spaces. By accident rather than good planning I drifted towards medicine. My initial years were in general medicine, but then extended periods in oncology and haematology followed. Work experience included a year in Saudia Arabia on a Bone Marrow Transplant Unit followed by 5 years in Germany (Frankfurt and Cologne) in an Oncology and Haematology Unit at the University of Cologne. I returned to New Zealand and commenced work again in haematology for approximately 3 years and then became interested in a new role established by the NZ Blood Service: the Transfusion Nurse Specialist. I have been involved in this role almost from inception and have enjoyed developing it.

Gustavo Duarte - Clinical Director Patient Services; Transfusion Medicine Specialist

Gustavo Duarte was trained in clinical haematology and transfusion medicine in Brazil. He has been working with Transfusion Medicine and PBM implementation for the last 15 years. In New Zealand, he is the New Zealand Blood Service Clinical Director of Patient Services, overseeing activities involving external customers, such as therapeutic apheresis, stem cell transplant, therapeutic venesection, and blood banks.

Richard Charlewood - Transfusion Medicine Specialist, Auckland

Richard Charlewood trained as a Haematologist in the UK and South Africa. He has worked as a Transfusion Medicine Specialist at New Zealand Blood Service for over 20 years. He has a special interest in computer systems and infectious diseases and is NZBS’s lead specialist for the donation accreditation laboratory that performs the infectious diseases testing as well as the blood management systems.

Gavin Cho - Clinical Director Blood Plasma & Laboratories, Transfusion Medicine Specialist

I trained in Haematology in Auckland (including at NZBS) before heading to Bristol for 2 years of research. After that I worked as a Haematologist in Northwest London for 9 years where I was the consultant responsible for transfusion, and clinical lead for haemoglobinopathies. I was a member of the London Regional Transfusion Committee (which covered about 90 hospitals) for a number of years, including a couple as the chair. Then I moved to NHS Blood and Transplant for 3 years in the blood donation. I have been back at NZBS for the last 5 years as a Transfusion Medicine Specialist and more recently Clinical Director for Blood, Plasma, and Laboratories.