Health capability bolstered after a slew of hires and project wins
We’ve welcomed a portfolio of new health sector designers to our Australian studios, from Principals and Senior Associates to Associates and Senior Designers.
It comes after 12 months of successfully bidding and winning significant work in healthcare, strengthening our reputation as a major force in the health sector.
To continue making a mark on the East coast, we’ve appointed Catherine Loker as Principal in the Sydney studio. An Architect with over 20 years’ experience in large, complex projects for both public and private clients, Catherine brings with her an impressive depth of health industry knowledge. In her previous role as Director at HDR in Sydney, Catherine Loker has had a strong focus on stakeholder consultation, clinical and interior design within integrated health settings.
We have recently completed the 15-storey new wing and revitalised ward for Sydney’s historic St Vincent’s Private Hospital, with two stages of redevelopment resulting in a five year design and construction program. With plenty of work in the Sydney pipeline, Hassell also welcomes Rashi Prashar into a Senior Associate role. Rashi has acted as Senior Clinical Lead across projects like the Westmead Precinct Hospital Redevelopment and the Dunedin Hospital – the largest health project in New Zealand to date.
Heading west, the senior leadership team of Jeff Menkens and Morag Lee have won the commission to deliver the Business Case for a major women’s and newborn services relocation hospital project in Perth and will be bolstered by the return of Romina Triboli Pisi to Hassell in an Associate position. With a career that has spanned across Argentina, Chile and Australia, Romina has been delivering bespoke healthcare spaces for over 10 years.
Working with Romina is Alexandra Smith, a new Associate in the Perth studio. Alexandra has come from Bryden Wood, London, and led the Biological Sciences’ Project at the University of NSW as well as working on Lismore Base Hospital, the University of Canberra Public Hospital, Wagga Wagga Mental Health Unit, and Maitland Hospital.
Three new leaders in Health have joined the Melbourne team, working closely with the Hassell Health Sector Leader Leanne Guy to support the recent significant project wins in the studio. Allison Hopper, Senior Associate, has come from a Group Director of Health role at Thomson Adsett delivering the Lyndoch Living Medical Centre in Warrnambool and the Kwong Wah Hospital in Hong Kong. Allison, both a clinical and design architect has a key role in supporting the delivery of one of Melbourne’s major hospital master plans.
The Melbourne studio has also welcomed Megan Hendy as Associate. Megan’s previous role as Project Architect and Health Planner at DesignInc Melbourne saw her working across a number of complex and technical clinical settings and health-specific environments, like designing spaces for medical imaging and operating theatres, and most recently the award winning Gandel Wing at Cabrini Malvern.
Kaye Santos also joined the Melbourne team as Senior Designer. Kaye helped deliver the Northern Beaches Hospital in NSW with BVN and has extensive experience in detailed departmental clinical planning and user group consultation.
Some of Hassell’s most significant healthcare work has recently come out of Queensland, with the team currently lead designers for Herston Quarter’s precinct master plan. While institutes and units within the precinct begin opening their doors, the team are also working on other projects including the West Moreton Health Service Master Plan, the Redland and Redcliffe Hospital Expansions – both Detailed Business Cases adding significant health service capacity for the state in South East Queensland.
The team in Brisbane has been bolstered with Stephen Watson elevated to Senior Associate - recognition for his outstanding contribution to the portfolio, together with our newly appointed Associate Ben Doolan. Ben is coming from a Senior Architect role at COX Architecture where he was a core member of the health team. He has been involved in the delivery of many health and research facilities and more recently has completed a number of NDIS Specialist Disability Accommodation (SDA) projects.