Teams » Refugees as Survivors (RASNZ)
Patron
Hon. Kofi Annan - former United Nations Secretary General
The seventh Secretary-General of the United Nations, served from 1997 to 2006 and was the first to emerge from the ranks of United Nations staff.
Board of Trustees
- Dr N. Rasalingham (Chair)
- Hon. Aussie Malcolm (Deputy Chair)
- Hon. Dick Hubbard.
- Trish Fordyce (Secretary)
- J.D. Milne
- Meng Ly
- Dr Tony Wansborough
- Ahmad Firooz Zary
Chief Executive
G E Poole
Gary has managed a range of health and humanitarian aid services working in Malaysia, Hawaii, New Zealand, Afghanistan and Central Asia. A psychologist with a flair for management, NGO service development, and evaluation research, he has held an ongoing interest in multi-cultural learning and capacity building. He has a strong commitment for working in ways which empower refugees to successfully resettle and build new lives.
Mangere Team
Eileen Swan
Clinical Team Leader
Eileen has a varied background. Having trained initially as a nurse then as a clinical psychologist she has worked both in New Zealand and in England. In New Zealand Eileen worked as a founding coordinator at 'HELP' for four years, then at the Leslie Centre for six years as a psychologist and family therapist. Her work at the centre covered a wide range of presenting problems with a particular focus on child trauma. Eileen has also worked extensively within the New Zealand Family Court system. Eileen then worked for four years as Managing Psychologist with Specialist Child and Family Services for Child Youth and Family.
In England Eileen worked as a psychologist for three years in the area of Primary Care, Health Psychology and spent time working at the Wallingford Forensic Unit, in Berkshire. Since her return to New Zealand Eileen has held a psychology position with the Department of Corrections and has been a manager with the Auckland District Health Board. She has a small private practice.
Eileen has worked for many years both as a clinician and a manager and is particularly interested in child and adult Mental Health working with trauma, depression and anxiety. For some years Eileen has had a particular interest in providing the best possible services to the changing New Zealand population.
David Lyon
Psychologist
During the 1980s David worked in several refugee camps in Thailand, including one where he was the United Nations Officer in Charge. He met his Thai wife in Thailand and both his sons were born there. David's M.A. Thesis was on adjustment difficulties of refugee students in N.Z. David has been a psychologist since 1991. He spent 12 years working in South Auckland for the Ministry of Education. This involved a particular focus on children with special needs and children with severe emotional and behavioural difficulties. David also served for many years on the MoE Traumatic Incident Team and for 3 years as Lead Practitioner for psychologists in Manukau GSE. David has a wealth of training and experience as a counsellor of adults and children, including more than 4 years as HoD Guidance & Counselling at Mount Albert Grammar. Due to his professional training and life experiences, David is well-fitted for his work of assessing and counselling refugees.
Shirley Richards
Psychologist
Throughout the 18 years Shirley has practiced as a psychologist, meeting the needs of young people displaying high and complex needs and challenging behaviours has been a centre of interest. She draws on an ecological methodology and evidence based psychological framework. Where possible, she advocates for collaboration across agencies and intersector groups to develop strengths based approaches. Shirley has lead multi disciplinary professional teams and coordinated the development of innovative interagency service models for young people from refugee backgrounds. Her interest in working with refugees began from her experiences in Dharamsala, India, where she worked as a volunteer in a Tibetan orphanage.
Maureen Lewis
Transition Services Coordinator/Counsellor
Maureen is a counsellor and art therapist. Her interest in cultural identity acculturation grows out of her experience of multicultural work in South Africa and her research into resettlement issues faced by migrants in New Zealand. She provides individual counselling as well as group work for refugees at the Mangere Refugee Reception Centre. Maureen's work is currently focused on children, adolescents and women's groups. Her work in this area involves the use of therapeutic art to support stress reduction and build resilience for the future.
Clinical Team
Tony Cooper, M.Phil (Hons), Dip.Ed.Psych, Dip.Tchg
Operations Manager
Tony has been practising as a psychologist for 20 years, working with adults, children and families. He has managed multi-disciplinary teams of psychologists, therapists, early childhood support personnel, bi-cultural facilitators and visiting teachers. Originally from the UK, Tony worked with Innuit people in the Canadian Eastern Arctic before migrating to New Zealand. He has been a teacher, university assessor, school psychologist, school principal, inspector of schools and senior review officer with the Education Review Office (ERO). Tony has a strong interest in working cross culturally. He subscribes to a dynamic, holistic approach to mental health, which empowers clients and acknowledges traditional values and practices within a clearly defined clinical framework.
Victoria Camplin-Welch
Cultural Competency Specialist
Victoria has been practising as a psychologist and psychotherapist for 14 years, providing therapeutic treatment for individuals, couples, families, groups and also organisations. She has a strong interest in the area of process work and has trained and facilitated small and large groups applying interventions. She has been integrally involved abroad in working within racial and ethnic diversity, particularly in conflict resolution. In New Zealand Victoria has been involved in managing a mental health service and had led the RAS team as Clinical Manager. She has a longstanding interest in cross-cultural issues, specifically in traditional healing practices of different cultures. Victoria works within a holistic and dynamic framework and believes that healing work involves both a heartful response towards clients as well as proficient skills and a solid theoretical base. Her work takes her into training and capacity-building for health care providers in the public and charitable sectors in New Zealand, as she develops resources and methods. Her current projects focus on the highly specialised fields of training interpreters to work together effectively with health care professionals, and in continuing education for cross-cultural competency and capacity building for practitioners.
Body Therapy Team - Working at Both Centres
Stephen Gin
Bowen Therapist
Stephen was born in New Zealand of Chinese ethnicity. His long standing interest in holistic body therapies started in 1995 when he was working in Australia as a Bowen Therapist. Whilst studying cranial sacral therapy Stephen worked extensively in the area of stress-anxiety related treatment. It was at this time that he first considered working with refugee populations. Stephen has a high level of expertise in working cross- culturally and a special interest in working with clients with post traumatic stress disorder. In addition to his therapeutic work Stephen enjoys listening to jazz and world music and is a student of yoga.
Claire Duggan
Neuromuscular Therapist
Claire is originally from the South of England. In 1995, following completion of her psychology degree, she migrated to New Zealand. For the next 7 years Claire worked at a private clinic as Director of Counselling in women's reproductive health. This position provided Claire with valuable experience of working with culturally diverse people. Claire's clinical experience in women's reproductive health provided a strong foundation for her subsequent work in the areas of therapeutic massage and neuromuscular therapy (NMT).
Claire is very pleased that her career with Refugees as Survivors New Zealand (RASNZ) is consistent with her passion for working with people through therapeutic massage and neuromuscular therapy. Her expertise and commitment to her work effectively addresses the needs of refugee that she treats, many of whom are suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Excited about her future with RASNZ, Claire looks forward to further researching the complex relationship between PTSD and ongoing body pain.
Danny Orani
Body Therapist
From the Cook Islands, Danny's father was a healer and introduced him from an early age to the holistic approach to health and wellbeing. His further studies in the field of holistic and natural therapies strengthened an appreciation of the powerful connection between body, mind, emotion and soul. He feels that working with RAS allows him to put his beliefs into practice in a rewarding way.
Consultant Psychiatrists - Working at Both Centres
RAS engages Consultant Psychiatrist Dr Grant Galpin to work with the Clinical Team to assess and treat the more severe cases of need involving major mental health problems where medication and monitoring may be required.
Administration
Diana Swarbrick
Administration Manager
Diana brings many skills in administration and long experience in banking. She has lived in Papua New Guinea and travelled extensively through China. Her commitment to refugees is expressed daily in the way she keeps the wheels of RAS turning, in the attention she gives to detail, and in helping staff and clients solve logistical problems.
Community Team
Dr Arif Saeid, MD, BSc, MBBS
Community Co-ordinator
Arif served as a medical doctor in Afghanistan for Medecins Sans Frontieres and has led the Community Services Team and worked with RAS since June, 2001. He identifies health and other special needs at the grassroots level within different refugee communities and initiates response. He supports and supervises the Community Facilitators to carry out health promotion, community development, and resettlement education activities in their own communities. He identifies needs for training and capacity-building and links directly with managers and funding providers in developing new resources. He works with refugee communities in employment, health and other initiatives which improve lives and advance resettlement. Arif liaises with Governmental and NGO and community groups, participates in community development and networking.
Community Facilitators
RAS engages fourteen Community Facilitators who provide highly valuable links within the grassroots level for different refugee communities in New Zealand. Community Facilitators provide information and resources, seek feedback from refugees on issues and needs. Community Facilitators work, through community development, to seek improvements and offer better solutions.
Interpreters
Zoreh Karimi, BSc Computer Science
Co-ordinator, Interpreters Service
Originally from Iran, Zoreh co-ordinates RASNZ's extensive interpreter workforce. She recruits, trains, organises and manages interpreters. In addition she is responsible for ensuring clinical standards for interpreters and for arranging translations of key documents, tests, diagnostic assessment and evaluation instruments. Zoreh's qualifications include advanced interpreting certificates in health and legal terminology, an adult language teaching certificate and a certificate in supervision. In addition Zoreh holds NAATI accreditation.
RASNZ trains and engages the services of over 100 interpreters who work alongside clinicians, educators and service providers. Interpretation in clinical and health care work is a highly specialised field in which RASNZ is a key national resource. The availability of skilled interpreters in a wide spectrum of many languages is essential to the work of our clinical and community teams. Our interpreters are highly valued, integral team members working through out all areas of RASNZ service delivery.
Research Team
Dr Kathy Jackson
Research Associate
Kathy has a Ph.D. in cross-cultural psychology and has been a registered psychologist for many years. A Kiwi, she lived in Australia for a long period and during part of that time taught undergraduate and graduate students at Monash University in Melbourne. She later also worked with resettled refugees in Canberra. In addition to her own research with resettled refugee communities, and in the evaluation of RAS programmes, Kathy acts as a resource person to other members of the team. Her role requires that she keep up to date on the current research into refugee and asylum seeker issues. She helps colleagues with research, information on best practice, with analysis of data and on conference presentations. Kathy also publishes research and resource material in the field of cross-cultural psychology.
Mobile Clinical Team
Sangita Wadnerkar
Psychologist
Sangita practiced as a Clinical psychologist for more than ten years in India. During that time she worked in hospital settings and private practice. Prior to joining RAS, she worked with clients from Odyssey House and the Government agency, Child Youth and Family (CYF). Sangita has wide experience of working with adults, adolescents and children experiencing a range of emotional and psychological problems. She has worked extensively with clients from a variety of cultural backgrounds and has a strong commitment to supporting refugees in the resettlement process.
Denise Buchanan
Social Worker
Denise is a registered social worker with 8 years experience of working in the area of mental health. She has worked with a diverse range of clients and has a particular interest in working with adolescents who have experienced mental health issues. Over the years Denise has practiced a variety of client centred approaches targeted at supporting clients to achieve personal independence through active participation and management of their own recovery.
Priscilla Dawson
Community Link Worker
Priscilla is an established and respected member of the Burmese community in New Zealand. She was born and attended school in Burma. In 1967, Priscilla's family migrated to New Zealand. Between 1992-1996 Priscilla and her husband returned to work in Burma. Over the years, Priscilla has devoted much of her time and energy to supporting and strengthening the Burmese community in New Zealand. In addition to her advocacy role, Priscilla has worked as a cultural adviser and interpreter for a range of Government agencies, health and education authorities and NGOs. Since joining RAS in 2000, Priscilla has had major input into a range of initiatives to support Burmese refugees and asylum seekers arriving in New Zealand. She has worked as a community facilitator, community link worker, interpreter, advocate and Lifeline counsellor. Priscilla is currently in the process of completing a Certificate in Social Work.
Dr Fahima Saeid
Community Link Worker
Dr Saeid worked in Afganistan as a Medical Doctor and Hospital Superintendent for Médecins Sans Frontières in Oruzgan Province. She has worked with RASNZ since 2006 and is the Community Link Worker in Dari and Farsi. She brings a range of skills in healthcare and community development.
Mengistu Birku Hailu
Community Link Worker
Mengistu B Hailu originally from Ethiopia where he completed High school and Theological study. He worked for a Christian Aid Organisation in Ethiopia for more than five years before migrating to Kenya due to the political unrest in Ethiopia. He arrived in New Zealand in 2003 as an asylum seeker. In New Zealand Mengistu has completed an Electrical Engineering course, a Diploma in Shipping and Freight, a National Certificate in Mental Health Support Work. He is currently doing a Bachelor in Bi-cultural Social Work. Mengistu is also the leader of a choir group in the Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church. He provides spiritual guidance, preaches gospel and provides support for the Ethiopian community in inner Auckland. He is also responsible for a community youth group that helps young Ethiopians to address some of the difficulties with resettlement and cross-cultural living. Mengistu is also involved with supporting older people in the Ethiopian community. Mengistu has also worked in different supporting facilities in Auckland, New Zealand.
Omar Mohamed
Community Link Worker
Omar was born in Somalia and migrated to New Zealand in 2000. He attended primary and intermediate schools in United Arab Emirates (UAE). He completed his high school education in New Zealand in 2005. In 2009, Omar gained a Bachelor of Business majoring in Management & Information Technology from Auckland University of technology (AUT) .Omar has been an active member of the Somali community for many years. He is currently a member of the Auckland Somali Students association (A.S.S.A) serving the wider Somali community in Auckland which is primarily involved with the youth and the University students. The aim is to create a resource centre where each University student from Somalia can have access to help and assistance, and establish networks amongst students to encourage helping one another.