Community Advisory Council

Paolo Cardelli joined Adelaide PHN as the new Chair of the Community Advisory Council in August 2023.

Paolo's prior experience as Chair of the National Kidney Consumer Council for Kidney Health Australia will be invaluable in helping to shape the programs we commission and ensure that health equity is achieved across metropolitan Adelaide.

I applied to join the Adelaide PHN Consumer Advisory Council in 2021 because ever since coming across the Adelaide PHN’s page on social media last year, I have felt inspired by the Adelaide PHN’s goal to enhance the efficacy of primary health care services in South Australia. 
 
I am a 5th-year medical student at the University of Adelaide and during my time on clinical placements, I have witnessed first-hand the myriad of issues and challenges facing primary health care. I have not only developed a greater awareness of the health needs of our community but have also been enlightened to the holistic role of primary health care. 
 
As a member of the Consumer Advisory Council, I am extremely keen to work collaboratively with my fellow Council members to facilitate effective primary healthcare provision across metropolitan Adelaide. 

I applied to join the Adelaide PHN Consumer Advisory Council in mid 2021 because I am very keen to be able to give back to the community and I think this is an amazing way of using my professional expertise and lived experience.

Presently I am working full time in a large tertiary hospital as a cancer coordinator, after nearly 50 years in the Nursing profession. My career has seen me working in the areas of acute care, rehab (primarily for stroke and joint replacement), mental health and 25 years as a Clinical Nurse in charge of ENT (Ear, Nose and Throat) in the operating room. Over the years I have also worked with Cancer Council Australia on an information pack for Indigenous Australians on Head & Neck Cancer.

As a member of the Consumer Advisory Council, I hope to be able to share my experience and knowledge of the inequities in cancer treatment and raise the profile of public education, focusing on prevention, detection, and survivorship.

I joined the Adelaide PHN Consumer Advisory Council in mid 2021. 

Whilst working and living in rural, remote, regional and metropolitan South Australia I have experienced a range of different interactions when accessing primary health care services. My engagement with these services has been in response to my own chronic health conditions and those of my children and as a result of caring for my elderly parents.

My qualifications and work experience include Human Resources, Project Management, Youth Work, Children’s Services and Adult Vocational Education. I am currently managing the youth services in a not-for-profit organisation, supporting marginalised young people and studying towards a qualification in Counselling. Previously I have been a child-care centre director and involved in education leadership with secondary student schools. Together with these paid roles I have also volunteered on management committees in sporting clubs, non-government bodies and Rotary. 
 

I joined the Adelaide PHN Consumer Advisory Council in mid 2021.
 
I am originally from Uruguay and Peru (born in Uruguay, raised in Peru and parents from both countries). I was the first person in my family to migrate to Australia, as a 17-year-old girl who had just finished high school and wanted to learn another language and get to know more cultures. 
 
For the past five years I have been working as a counsellor and community educator, mainly with people from CALD communities and refugee backgrounds. During this time I have witnessed many people’s migration stories; the challenges, the tears, the solitude, the friendships that become families, the frustrations, the eagerness to belong, and the growth.  
 
I look forward to working with colleagues in the Consumer Council to bring a voice to the minority groups that I work with and to advocate for a kinder and more just society where everyone is truly welcome and feels safe and where their health care is delivered in a culturally appropriate, affordable, and accessible way.