Scheme Customer Advisory Panel

Dr. Andrew Dickson is a consultant researcher and disability advocate; he is a current member of the ACC Futures Coalition. Andrew is an Expert by Experience; his child, Ben, has a life-long serious injury as a result of injury during birth.

Andrew had an early conflict with ACC on behalf of Ben that has since been resolved. He is well connected to families navigating the ACC system.

In addition to his advocacy work, Andrew has substantive expertise in governance and the role of corporations in reporting, operational change management, and strategic project management. He is also a former lecturer in Organisation Studies and Health Sociology.

Claudia is a paraplegic wheelchair user as a result of a mountain bike accident in 2015. She is a serious injury client of ACC bringing a user perspective to the Scheme Advisory Panel.   

In addition to her lived experience with disability, Claudia has an extensive background in public policy including work in America and Australia with extensive leadership experience across different sectors.  

Claudia Boyles is the Chief Advisor, Disability for Oranga Tamariki – Ministry for Children. The role purpose is to lead a significant shift in disability policies, practices and supports aligned to the New Zealand Disability Strategy, Whāia Te Ao Mārama and the social- and rights-based models of disability. Claudia supports Oranga Tamariki’s ongoing commitment to the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (UNCRPD) as well as the UN Convention on the Rights of Children (UNCRC) and Te Tiriti o Waitangi. 

Lesley Clarke is currently working as a contractor in the health sector following her tenure as the Chief Executive Officer of the New Zealand Medical Association, the professional association for New Zealand doctors, with 5,500 members across all medical disciplines.  

Lesley has held a wide range of management and leadership roles across the health sector, including as the Executive General Manager of Medibank Health Solutions New Zealand Limited, the Chief Executive Officer of the Researched Medicines Industry Association, and Executive Director of the New Zealand Private Hospitals Association.  

Lesley also previously worked for ACC, where she helped lead the development and implementation of significant organisational and delivery change, including the introduction of case management and the beginning of direct contracting with health providers.  

Lesley was a member of the ACC Elective Services Review and the Medical Issues Working Group, providing input as a treatment provider representative yet also considering the perspective and needs of injured people, those that support them, and ACC’s other customers. Lesley also participates in the development of new models of care and service delivery with a particular focus on workforce, regulations, funding, system, and structural enablers. Lesley has strong networks across the sector working with provider organisations, professional groups, regulatory authorities, government agencies, District Health Boards, and NGOs.

Nicola Kayes is Professor of Rehabilitation, and Director of the Centre for Person Centred Research (PCR - https://cpcr.aut.ac.nz/) at Auckland University of Technology (AUT) in New Zealand. PCR is a transdisciplinary research centre based in the Health and Rehabilitation Research Institute and School of Clinical Sciences at AUT. Their goal is to contribute to transformative change in rehabilitation policy and practice to optimise outcomes for people living with the enduring consequences of injury or illness.  

With a background in health psychology, Nicola’s specific research expertise draws insights from the intersection between health psychology and rehabilitation – critically exploring how what we know about how people think, feel, behave and respond in the context of injury and illness can inform how we work to optimise rehabilitation outcomes.

This includes an interest in health service delivery and the organisational structures, cultures, policies and practices that can make possible or constrain ways of working and, therefore, impact on our ability to deliver outcomes that matter to people. Nicola’s recent research has focused on better understanding aspects of person-centred practice, therapeutic relationship, peer support, self-management, engagement, accessibility, and knowledge mobilisation in rehabilitation. 

Nicola is a highly-respected researcher and educator in the rehabilitation field in New Zealand and internationally. Nicola has a long history of working with ACC across a number of business areas including carrying out research on behalf of and in collaboration with ACC and providing advice and consultancy to ACC and suppliers. 

Tania Kingi (Ngāti Pūkeko, Ngāti Awa, Ngai Tai, Te Arawa) has a long history of government, community and Māori development experience. She is currently pursuing a Doctorate of Indigenous Advancement in traditional Māori responses to disability and has a wealth of experience in this field.

She is a former board member of the NZ Blood Service, the Charities Commission, the Whānau Ora Regional Leadership Group, MSD’s national complaints panel, Auckland Transport’s community panel, the Disability Committee to Auckland Council and ACC’s Rā Mātua Panel (which was established to support the proposed NZIIS).

Tania is currently a member on expert advisory panels to the Chief Ombudsman, the National Equity Steering Group for Te Whatu Ora and is a recent appointment to Ngaa Pou Hauora o Tāmaki Makaurau Iwi Māori Partnership Board.

Additionally, Tania is researching evidence for four Waitangi Tribunal Claims on behalf of Te Roopu Waiora; a unique kaupapa Māori organisation founded and governed entirely by whānau hauā.

Tom Barraclough is a consultant and advisor with expertise in law, medicolegal systems, public policy and digital technologies. Tom is Strategic Director and co-Founder at Brainbox, a think tank and consultancy specialising in issues at the intersection of law, public policy and digital technologies. Brainbox has published reports on using judicial decisions to inform policy reform, the legislative process, modelling legislation in computational systems, and the use of digital systems for regulatory purposes (including content moderation).

Tom is also a co-Founder at Informd, a software company with a platform that supports doctors and patients to communicate and make shared decisions about a course of treatment.  

Tom was a legal researcher and advocate with Warren Forster, Barrister and Researcher. He has experience with ACC policy, law and practice, as well as the wider legal and political processes associated with the dispute resolution process. This includes experience gained through conciliations, hearings, and appeals in the District Court, Accident Compensation Appeal Authority, Human Rights Review Tribunal, the High Court, and the Court of Appeal.

His work with Warren and Acclaim Otago led to the review by Miriam Dean QC. Tom contributed to the examination of the New Zealand Government’s ACC policy in Geneva, Switzerland in relation to compliance with the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities. Tom also co-authored a report on Accessibility legislation for New Zealand, released in 2021.