Gary Sutcliffe
HCH Governance, Consumer Representative

Coordinator, Health Consumer Advisory Service

Gary is the coordinator of Health Navigator’s Health Consumer Advisory Service.  His health-related background is primarily in mental health initially when he accessed mental health services as a result of experiencing depression and anxiety associated with an impending business failure in the early 1990s. Over the past 30 years, Gary has experienced both recovery and relapse and learned much about himself and the mental health system. 

Gary joined the mental health workforce in 2004 and his work since then has included peer support and advocacy, leadership and management roles, consumer audit work, training and development. Gary lives in Auckland with his wife of 47 years. He has two adult children and five granddaughters. 

Gary retired from the workforce in April 2017 after three and a half years employed as a peer support specialist, self-management facilitator and health coach with East Tamaki Healthcare (now Tamaki Health). However, in his “retirement”, he continues to work in the health sector and does some voluntary work in the community.

In addition to Gary’s role as coordinator of the Health Consumer Advisory Service, his assignment work to date includes representation on the governance of the Kaiawhina Workforce Taskforce, the Interventional Cardiac Registry governance group (ANZACS QI), Health Care Home Collaborative, and the Ministry of Health Diabetes Action Plan expert advisory group as a consumer representative.

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