Directors
At SWARH, our people are at the heart of our organisation.
We are proud to have a dedicated team of individuals who are committed to making a positive impact on rural healthcare.
Bronwen Alsop, Director Service Support, SWARH
Bronwen commenced in the role of Director Service Support for SWARH in 2021.
Bronwen has worked in a variety of roles within the health sector since 2008 ranging from IT Support and Project Management roles as well as leadership roles managing both support and project management teams.
She is passionate about the use of technology in supporting the delivery of healthcare services and the importance of providing a positive customer focussed IT support experience for SWARH members.
Chris Coghlan, Director Applications, SWARH
Chris is a senior technology leader with over 20 years’ industry experience in creating vision, identifying opportunities, and leading high performing teams.
Throughout his career, Chris has been responsible for business analysis, software engineering, data analytics, applications management, project and portfolio management.
Chris joined SWARH in 2018 and is focussed on building innovative solutions that address the complex challenges facing the healthcare industry, while always keeping the patient's needs at the forefront.
Andrew Macfarlane, CIO, SWARH
Andrew is an experienced IT professional and has worked in the IT industry for over 30 years. His career has spanned a number of industry sectors, including retail, financial management, airlines, corporate analytics, environment services and now healthcare. In previous organisations, he has been responsible for software development, database administration, applications management, project and portfolio management, data analytics and eventually taking accountability for the delivery of all IT services to an organisation, which included its IT infrastructure, software applications and IT security.
Andrew joined Barwon Health in July 2018 as the Director of Technology and Communications and has been responsible for providing services to the whole SWARH alliance including Barwon Health as CIO since 2019.
He is passionate about innovation and using technology to contribute to positive healthcare outcomes to the community by providing data and 'fit for purpose' systems where and when they are needed in a safe way, ensuring they meet both the short-term and strategic objectives.
Shahed Jalal, Director Infrastructure
Shahed Jalal is an accomplished IT leader with over 20 years of experience in managing and supporting teams and projects for the successful deployment of data center and cloud infrastructure solutions.
He is proficient in cloud technology, automation, virtualization, and integrating multiple technologies to build and maintain high-performing, secure solutions for businesses.
Shahed excels in leadership, strategic planning, project management, team management, budget management, risk management, IT strategy, change management, performance management, stakeholder management, vendor management, and process improvement.
Chris Punton, Finance & Commercial Manager
Chris is a finance professional, qualified with CPA Australia, and brings over 15 years of finance & accounting experience from across different industries including leadership roles.
Chris joined SWARH in 2019 to lead the finance & commercial function with a focus on embedding strong financial decision making & governance into SWARH’s processes to ensure value for money is delivered to members. The team is responsible for finance business partnering, project support, budgeting & forecasting, day to day finance & accounting duties and ensuring an equitable allocation of SWARH’s joint venture costs to members.
Lauren Solomon, Chief Clinical Informatics Officer
Lauren Solomon is a Digital Health Leader with 16 years’ experience in clinical and digital health roles across Victoria, Queensland, the United Kingdom. Lauren is a Certified Health Informatician with the Australasian Institute of Digital Health and holds a degree in Occupational Therapy.
Lauren is passionate about digital health design that is safe, innovative and human centred.
Lauren joins Barwon Health and SWARH from Alfred Health where she was the inaugural Chief Allied Health Informatics
Maree Bennett, Director of Digital Health
Maree has recently joined SWARH as the Director of Digital Integration. Maree has worked at Barwon Health for over 30 years in a variety of nursing, clinical and health leadership roles and is passionate about Health equity and access to Health services for all community members.
Maree has strong interests in Nursing leadership, clinical governance and health service operations.
Last Modified: Wednesday, 05 February 2025