About us

Dame Kerry Prendergast, Chair

Former-Wellington Mayor and Vice President of Local Government New Zealand, Kerry holds an MBA from Victoria University. 

Kerry joined the Wellington Free Board in 2013 and is also Chairwoman, Director, or Trustee of several other organisations including the Royal NZ Ballet, Wellington Opera, Oceania Healthcare, Capital Kiwi, VUW Foundation, the Wellington Community Trust, and Fishserve. She chaired Tourism NZ, NZ Film Commission, EPA, and was on WorkSafe NZ. She was awarded a Companion of the New Zealand Order of Merit in 2011 for her services to local government and a Dame Companion of the New Zealand Order of Merit in 2019. She is a distinguished Alumni of Victoria University.

Alan Isaac, Deputy Chair

Alan has a long career in accounting, corporate advisory work and a wide range of directorships. During the 80s, his expertise in helping struggling corporates through a process of recovery saw him become involved in many assignments where organisations reshaped themselves in order to carry on and thrive. 

In recent years, Alan has held high profile directorships for organisations both here and overseas, including President of the International Cricket Council, Chairman of Cricket NZ Inc., a member of the Board of Sport and Recreation NZ, and Rugby New Zealand 2011 Ltd in the lead up to the Rugby World Cup. He currently Chairs the Board of the NZ Community Trust and is a Board member of Skellerup Holdings Ltd, Oceania Healthcare Ltd and Scales Corporation. He was awarded a CNZM in 2013 for services to sport and business.

As a proud Wellington, he values the opportunity to be able to contribute to Wellington Free Ambulance.

Louise Marsden

Louise is a Partner at Mafic Partners, an infrastructure advisory firm.  Louise’s involvement in infrastructure has been in various capacities: as a debt provider, equity owner, asset manager and in governance roles.  She currently serves as a Board Director of the Royal New Zealand Ballet, Te Toi Mahana, the Wellington-based Community Housing Provider, and on the Board of the Wellington Free Ambulance Service Trust.

She holds a degree in Accounting and Finance, is a Chartered Accountant (ICAEW) and a Chartered Member of the IOD.

Chris Masters

Chris has been a GP in Hutt Valley since 1997 and has clinical interests in travel medicine and minor surgical procedures. He has been looking after patients at Ropata Health since 1997, first as a Registrar and as a Partner since 1999.

Chris is currently a shareholder and director of Ropata Health and has also been a Trustee of Cosine PHO since 2005 and Director of NZ Health Group since 2021.  His professional interests lie in the areas of Integrated Care and Clinical Quality, and he has been the Clinical Director of Primary and Integrated Care for Hutt Valley DHB (now Health NZ) since 2017.

Helmut Modlik

Neil Paviour-Smith

Neil has over 35 years' experience in various roles in New Zealand capital markets based in Wellington for all that period. Since 2001, he has been Managing Director of Forsyth Barr, a leading wealth management, sharebroking and investment banking firm.  He is the former Chancellor of Victoria University of Wellington having been a member of the university Council for nine years.  

He is a Director of NZ Initiative and NZ Art Show and is helping to establish a charity hospital in Wellington with the Wellington Regional Charity Hospital Trust.  He is a former director of NZX and Chartered Accountants Australia New Zealand (CAANZ).  He is a Fellow Chartered Accountant and Chartered Fellow of the Institute of Directors.  Neil was an inaugural recipient of a Sir Peter Blake Trust Leadership Award in 2005.

Helen Pocknall

Michael Quigg

A consultant at Quigg Partners, Michael has been in law for over 40 years and has practiced in all areas of Employment law, including Health and Safety. Michael has previously held various Board appointments, most recently completing 6 years sitting on the New Zealand Parole Board and for 10 years chaired the New Zealand Law Society Employment Law Committee.

Michael’s other governance roles have included the Home of Compassion Board, the New Zealand Cricket Museums Trust and he was a Member of the National Board of IHC for eight years.  Michael has also served as President of Cricket Wellington for five years.  Over the past 25 years, Michael presented at various The Institute of Directors' courses with the most recent being the Chairman’s Workshop at which he presented for over 10 years. He also currently holds a Board position at Whānau Mercy Ministries.

Dan Pallister-Coward is the Chief Executive of Wellington Free Ambulance, a role he has held since 2026. He's an experienced and values-driven leader with extensive experience across the emergency services, health, and not-for-profit sectors.

The Executive Leadership Team 

• General Manager Operations - Eric Tibbott 
• General Manager People and Enabling Services - Liz Belke
• General Manager Fundraising and Communications - Claire Carruthers
• Executive Medical Director - Dr Erica Douglass

The Senior Leadership Team 

• Emergency Planning Manager - Katie Wilson
• Head of Clinical Communications - Hannah Crombie
• Head of Clinical Governance - Jimmy Crombie
• Head of Commercial - Kevin Broome
• Head of Communications - Rachel Wilson
• Head of Digital & Data/CIO - Mike McGovern
• Head of Emergency Ambulance Services - Kate Worthington
• Head of Event Medical Services- Daniel Ashcroft
• Head of Finance - Dan Snell
• Head of Health, Safety & Wellness - Kim Payton
• Head of Māori and Equity (Kaihautū) - Yvonne Gemmell
• Head of Patient Transfer Services - Ratna Attli
• Head of People & Capability - Susan Greager
• Head of Performance, Reporting and Assurance - Teresa O'Toole
• Head of Programme Delivery - Matt Savage

L-R: Dr Andy Swain, Dr Erica Douglass and Dr Dave O’Byrne

Executive Medical Director - Dr Erica Douglass joined the team in 2023. Erica began her medical career as a paramedic in Colorado, USA before going on to complete her medical training as an emergency medicine specialist. Her passion for prehospital medicine drove her to complete a fellowship in prehospital and disaster medicine after which she spent 10 years as medical director for both ground and critical care flight / retrieval teams in the US before relocating with her family to Gisborne, Aotearoa New Zealand.

Her further areas of interest and expertise are in trauma care, airway management, critical care and flight medicine and quality improvement through education. Erica will also be working as an emergency consultant at Wellington Regional Hospital. 

Medical Director (Education, Training and Research) - Dr Andy Swain has served as our Medical Director since 2008. He is also Associate Professor in Paramedicine at AUT, Clinical Lecturer in Emergency Medicine at the University of Otago Wellington, and Clinical Director of Wellington Helicopter Emergency Medical Service. He works and teaches in Wellington Free Ambulance and in the Emergency Department of Wellington Hospital and is familiar with ambulance and helicopter environments. Andy has been involved with ambulance services since 1985, and he led the development of community paramedicine and flight paramedicine in the Greater Wellington region.

Deputy Medical Director - Dr Dave O’Byrne joined Wellington Free Ambulance in 2019. Outside of his work with Wellington Free, he is an emergency physician at Hutt Valley District Health Board. Dave is involved in the oversight and direction of Wellington Free Ambulance, especially around our team of extended care paramedics, and advanced airway management.

Dave is a member on the national ambulance clinical procedures and guidelines working group and contributes to the development of national policies that determine the treatment and destination of patients in Aotearoa New Zealand with major trauma.