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MIPS Board

The MIPS Board meet regularly to govern MIPS operations and examine current medico-legal issues facing our members.

Gary

Mr. Gary Speck
Chair AM MBBS BMedSc(Hons),
FRACS, FAOrthA, FAMA,GAICD

Gary obtained his qualification as an orthopaedic surgeon, FRACS (Orth) in 1983 and has specialised his practice to treatment of spinal disorders. He is an active member of the Spine Society of Australia, Australian Orthopaedic Association, North American Spine Society and Royal Australasian College of Surgeons (RACS) and chairs the RACS Medico Legal Section Committee. Gary is a consultant at the Alfred Hospital and has continuing involvement in training Orthopaedic surgeons. He is a director of MIPS Insurance, a director (until May 2023) and past vice-president of AMA, director of AMPCo, publisher of the MJA, and past director and past vice president of AMA Victoria, co-chairing the Joint LIV-Bar Council AMAVic Committee.

He was a member of the Health Innovation and Reform Council (of the Government of Victoria, advising the Health Minister) and Chairman of its Standing Committee on Health Quality, Safety and Outcomes from 2012 to 2015, and continues advisory roles to government. In 2014 he was appointed a Member of the Order of Australia (AM) for significant service to medicine as an orthopaedic surgeon, and to professional organisations.

Dr Victoria Atkinson

Dr. Victoria Atkinson
MBBS, MHM, FRACS, GAICD

Building on a career as a cardiothoracic surgeon at the Royal Melbourne Hospital, Victoria has combined her clinical knowledge with an executive career, as the National Chief Medical Officer for Healthscope Ltd. With over 25 years’ experience across public, private and not-for-profit health sectors as well as aged care, Victoria’s experience spans clinical, executive and director roles. Victoria has extensive Board experience and in addition to the MIPS Board, is currently a Non-Executive Director the Opal Aged Care Boards.

Anthony

Mr. Anthony Mason
BSocSC, FIA, Hon FFFLM

For 27 years Tony was a consulting actuary with the partnership Lane Clark and Peacock (LCP), the largest independent actuarial consultancy in the UK. Between 1996 and 2007 he was LCP’s managing director. Since 1983 he has specialised in medical negligence and his clients included the worldwide operations of Medical Protection Society (MPS) and the NHS Litigation Authority in England, plus many other governments and international insurers. From the mid-1980s he was heavily involved in advising medical defence organisations in Australia and in 1988 became the consulting actuary to MIPS until he left LCP to become the CEO of MPS in 2007. Since retiring from MPS, he now performs part-time international consultancy for Medical Protective in the USA and he became a non-executive director of MIPS Insurance in 2012. In 2011 he was made an Honorary Fellow of the Faculty of Forensic and Legal Medicine.

Merran

Merran Kelsall
B. Com. (Hons.), FCPA, FCA, MBA,
FAICD, FFin

Merran is an experienced, independent non- executive director and chair with expertise in finance, audit, risk, and compliance. She has a strong focus on corporate governance including financial and non-financial external reporting to include strategy, risk management and aligning performance management with strategy. Merran has worked extensively with member-based organisations and those delivering public interest outcomes. She previously spent over 20 years in public practice. Her industry experience includes financial and professional services; insurance; superannuation; health; education; contract management and utilities and major infrastructure projects. Merran is a former Chairman and CEO of the Australian Auditing and Assurance Standards Board (AUASB) and Member of the International Auditing and Assurance Standards Board (IAASB).

Bruce2

Dr. Bruce Mugford
BMBS, FRACGP, FACRRM, MPHTM,
Grad Dip Family Med

Bruce graduated from Flinders University in 1984 and became a Fellow of the College of General Practitioners in 1995. He presently works as a Rural Generalist and urban GP but has also held senior executive positions in corporate medicine and general practice training. Bruce has been a member of the Australian Medical Council for 6 years and a Director for the last four, sitting on the Finance and Risk Management and Investment Advisory sub-committees. He is also a practitioner member of the Medical Board of South Australia, a position he has held for the last 8 years, sitting on the Registration and Notifications sub- committees.

350x350 john boucher

Associate Professor John
Boucher AM
BDSc, LDS, FRACDS, FICD,
FPFA, GAICD

John Boucher graduated from the University of Melbourne in 1978 as First in Graduating Class with First Class Honours. John is a practising general dentist with a career long involvement in dental education and assessment, having completed 42 years of teaching and examining at the Melbourne Dental School, University of Melbourne. John is a Past President of the Australian Dental Council having been an examiner for the past 29 years.

John has also had a long-term involvement in organized and regulatory dentistry and is a past President of the Dental Practice Board of Victoria and the Victorian Registration and Notifications Committee of the Dental Board of Australia. He is a past member of the Australian Dental Association (Vic) Defence Committee.

John is currently a Director of the Royal Australasian College of Dental Surgeons, the Victorian Medical Insurance Agency Ltd and Melbourne Teaching Health Clinics (University of Melbourne). He is a graduate of the Australian Institute of Company Directors.

John and his wife Rhonda have travelled to Vietnam with Rotary Australia on a total of eight occasions providing Primary Dental Care to school aged patients in rural Vietnam as volunteers. In 2019 he was appointed a Member of the Order of Australia (AM) for significant service to dentistry and to professional standards.

Mark Valena - MIPS Board Member

Mr Mark Valena
BBus, CA, GAICD

Mark is an experienced director, CEO and executive with deep expertise in the insurance and health sectors, strategy development, M&A, capital and financial management, and risk management. Mark has a reputation as an effective, confident, knowledgeable leader and collaborator, helping make the complex simple, and operating from a position of trust, respect, and empathy. Currently a non-executive director, Mark holds in addition to being a director of MIPS, director positions as the Chair of a specialist motor insurer, a committee member (director) of a specialist professional indemnity insurer, a health insurer, and a disability support services organisation. Mark has consulted in strategy, problem solving, operational performance, governance, and risk.

A hands-on practitioner of a wide range of frameworks and tools that can assist teams to set strategy, manage implementation, improve performance, improve decision making, identify and resolve issues, and increase accountability. He is an experienced and highly capable facilitator. Mark also provides coaching and mentoring formally and informally. He sees coaching as a capability that all leaders should develop and practice.

The MIPS Board is comprised of seven non-executive directors.

The board includes experienced medical and dental professionals who also possess various other insurance, business and governance qualifications, skills and experience. The other directors bring specialist business, accounting and governance skills and experience to the Board.

MIPS Board vacancies, when they occur, initiate an assessment of the current skills and experience of the remaining MIPS Board Directors to identify any potential gaps in or anticipated needs for skills and experience that a replacement director should have to compliment the MIPS Board.

There is an expectation that any candidates wishing to be considered for appointment will have  skills and experience in addition to their professional qualifications. These might include completion of the AICD Company Directors course together with governance experience gained through involvement as a director or member of another company or perhaps a professional organisation. 

Potential replacement directors can be identified by many processes including executive search, professional institute (AICD) advertising and personal referral from members of the Board or members of MIPS to MIPS Company Secretary.

Once identified, the candidates for director appointment undergo an interview/s assessment process to determine the most suitable.  The successful candidate is then recommended for appointment by the MIPS Board.

The MIPS Board members are appointed by the Board of MIPS Holdings (MIPSH), which owns 100% of the issued ordinary shares of MIPS.  As a shareholder, MIPSH is not entitled to a dividend or any surplus assets (except for the return of capital) in the event of a winding up.

MIPS Insurance (MIPSi) is a wholly owned subsidiary of MIPS and has a board appointed by the MIPS Board. The MIPSi Board consists of seven members and the vacancies and skills and experience assessment of the MIPSi Board are managed in the same way as that of the MIPS Board.