ADEC - Board of Management
Members
Helen Bryant
Helen started off in nursing before she obtained a degree in commerce. For the last 16 years she worked in the disability area firstly in setting up Australian Home Care (wholly owned by the MS Society) then as General Manager of services for ParaQuad Vic. She later did a masters degree in organisational dynamics and is currently completely her PhD. Her PhD focuses on the culture of in home care and the dynamics between carers and clients with disabilities. Helen also obtained a diploma in corporate governance with the Australian Institute of Corporate Secretaries.
Helen is interested in culture as it effects organisations and takes a special interest in working with families affected by both disabilities and mental health problems. Helen had a daughter with severe mental health issues and is keen to see the community become more responsive to the needs of people with both disabilities and mental health issues. She is currently working as a consultant and project worker within the disability sector.
Sophie Nguyen
Sophie was born in Vietnam and came to Australia in 1981 as a refugee. She has a son with a disability and since his birth seventeen (17) years ago, Sophie has spent most of her time as a permanent carer. She has two other sons.
Sophie volunteered to serve as a Board member in 2006 and it was the first time she had been on a committee or board of management. Apart from her tenure on the Board of Management, she also participates in the Vietnamese-speaking Carer Support Group.
Sophie Holmes
Sophie Holmes was born in Australia. Sophie comes from a Polish origin and speak fluent Polish. She has a longstanding interest in working with families from non-engish speaking backgrounds and is a director of the Williams Road Family Therapy where they have teams and practitioners (psychologists and counsellors) who speak at least 12 different languages. Sophie personally supervises and trains practitioners to work with families where a member has a chronic disability, including chronic mental illness, developmental/ intellectual/physical disabilities. They have developed programs and methods to work with children and families where the parents have a mental illness, a member of the family is diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder, major mental illness, eating disorders, leaning disabilities and learning difficulties.
Sophie has been on the Board of the Psychotherapy and Counselling Federation since 1998 and currently is the Chair of Ethics.