National Executive Members

Brooke is an early career pharmacist who has already been successful in her nine-year career. She became a community pharmacy owner in Upper Hutt at the age of 25. Her pharmacy employs 22 staff, so she understands the challenges facing pharmacy owners.

Brooke has been a Pharmaceutical Society of New Zealand branch president for three years and a branch committee member for seven years. She is a board member for the Pharmacy Guild of New Zealand, and has been both an intern and PACT preceptor.

She is passionate about pharmacist consultation services, vaccinations and embracing tikanga Māori and te reo Māori and enabling all pharmacists and pharmacy staff to provide culturally safe pharmacy practice.

Bronwen Shepherd - Treasurer

BPharm, BBA

Bronwen is a Business Development Manager for Green Cross Health, with professional and commercial experience across broad spectrum of Community Pharmacies, and is a Director of five pharmacies in Wellington.

Bronwen has participated in an extensive range of governance, advisory and other collaborative sector roles, in order to attain sustainable and positive change for pharmacy and patients, including with the Pharmacy Guild, District Health Boards, Ministry of Health, Medsafe, Pharmacy Council, PHARMAC and Primary Health Organisations.

She is currently serving as a Board Member for the Pharmacy Defence Association and Trustee of the New Zealand Pharmacy Education and Research Foundation.

Michael Hammond

PGDipPhcy (Dist) DipLeadMgt BPharm (Hons) MPS RegPharmNZ

After graduating from the University of Auckland, Michael started his career at North Shore Hospital before moving to develop and implement a clinical pharmacist facilitator service for the Primary Health Organisation (PHO) in Rotorua. He has recently finished leading COVID-19 Pharmacy Establishment Team in the roll-out of the COVID-19 vaccine in community pharmacy across the three Auckland districts and is now looking at projects in the childhood immunisation space.

Michael is also the project manager for the quality improvement programme Safety in Practice, as well as a number of other primary care initiatives for Waitematā and Auckland districts. To support him in this role, he also works casually as a pharmacist at Waitematā’s North Shore Hospital. He is enthusiastic about learning and continuing education; being the first New Zealand pharmacist to complete the Diploma of Leadership and Management through the Pharmaceutical Society of Australia. He is currently also on the Auckland Branch of PSNZ. Michael is passionate about patient safety and expanding the roles and services for pharmacy.

Sandy Bhawan

PGCertPhcy, BPharm (Hons), BSc. RegPharmNZ, FPS

Sandy is a registered Pharmacist with over 25 years’ experience in most practice settings available to pharmacists in the NZ Health and Disability sector. This includes community pharmacy, the School of Pharmacy, University of Otago; Dunedin and Wellington Hospital, Pharmacy Council of New Zealand, Te Awakairangi PHO, and more recently Pharmac Te Pātaka Whaioranga – a Crown entity.

Sandy is also well known for her contribution and influence on quality improvement initiatives to improve access and optimal use of medicines through her work with the Health Quality and Safety Commission’s Whakakotahi programme 2017 - 2020. In 2019, Sandy led the authorship of Pharmac's Achieving medicine access equity in Aotearoa - towards a theory of change – a national publication identifying the primary drivers for medicine access for national influence.

Sandy was awarded a Fellowship of the Society in 2018 in recognition of her significant contribution to developing wider roles for the pharmacy profession such as Medicines Use Reviews, the Pharmacist prescriber scope of practice and general practice-based pharmacist roles. The designation also recognised her leadership of policy work on the Medicines Management Competence Framework, intern programme accreditation, and the development and implementation of the new Pharmacist Prescriber scope of practice. This included setting the prescriber competencies, training, and accreditation standards.

Sandy is the first Fijian Indian pharmacist to be elected to the National Executive of the Pharmaceutical Society of New Zealand. She is a Pacific Pharmacists Association Intern Mentor, an Honorary Clinical Lecturer at the School of Pharmacy, University of Auckland, and a member of the PSNZ Wellington Branch. Sandy is based at the Royal New Zealand College of General Practitioners where she heads up the College’s National Quality Programmes for general practice.

Originally from Fiji, she now resides in Te Awakairangi (Hutt Valley), Wellington with her family.

Lanny Wong

After graduating from the University of Auckland, Lanny embarked on a dynamic journey that led her from urban to regional settings, culminating in the proud ownership of a flourishing rural community pharmacy in Mangawhai Te Tai Tokerau. Armed with Te Reo Māori from Te Wānanga o Aotearoa, Lanny's education forms a robust foundation in pharmacy practice, equity, and patient care.

Lanny's engagement with PSNZ has been a progressive and fulfilling chapter, from serving as an intern rep to a committee member and eventually as Branch President of the Auckland PSNZ branch. Concurrently, her role as a Pharmaceutical Advisor to ACC has provided invaluable insights into healthcare intersections.

Balancing the rigors of professional leadership with the joys of motherhood, Lanny intimately understands the challenges of navigating a successful career while raising two vibrant young children.

As an ethnic woman, Lanny has personally encountered workplace challenges, fuelling her commitment to cultivate a workplace that is not just welcoming but truly inclusive.

Beyond her professional roles, Lanny takes immense pride in being a founder of the Prescription Access Initiative (PAI) team. Their advocacy supported the removal of the prescription co-payment tax, breaking down primary care barriers and directly benefiting vulnerable populations. Lanny has been featured on TVNZ Breakfast interviews, taking immense pride in showcasing the impactful work the pharmacy profession undertakes.

Lanny's journey, from university to rural pharmacy ownership and advocacy, is a testament to the exciting possibilities within the field. She looks forward to continuing this journey, making positive strides in pharmacy, and showcasing the vital contributions of the profession to colleagues and the community.

Mariana Hudson

MPA MPS

Mariana is the the President of Ngā Kaitiaki o te Puna Rongoā o Aotearoa -The Māori Pharmacists Association (MPA).

Mariana Hudson grew up in Ōpōtiki, in the Bay of Plenty. Her first job in pharmacy was at a local pharmacy, at the young age of 15. Her passion for the industry led her to start pharmacy school in 2002, after having her first child. She had her second child while at pharmacy school and registered as a pharmacist in 2007, following her internship in Gisborne. In 2020, Mariana was the recipient of an HRC grant (Health Research Council of New Zealand) by where her project was a partnership between the Bay of Plenty District Health Board and The Centre for Health, located in Tauranga. It involved the contribution of whānau Māori to the development and use of the LifeCurve App, now being utilised all over New Zealand. In 2021, Mariana was awarded a 3-year Māori Cardiovascular (CV) Research Fellowship from the Heart Foundation of New Zealand to support her learnings of Kaupapa Māori Philosophy. Her project is developing a Road Map for Research Funders to assist in achieving Equity in Cardiovascular Health.

Callum Porter

Callum is locum pharmacist working throughout Te-Ika-a-Māui, North Island, but primarily based in the Wellington and Wairarapa regions. Callum grew up around pharmacy, with both of his parents being practising pharmacists for over 35 years.

Callum’s passion for pharmacy really ignited at the University of Otago, where he represented New Zealand at the 2018 and 2019 IPSF (International Pharmaceutical Students Federation) World Conferences. After graduating in 2019, he completed his internship and managed a pharmacy in the Wairarapa before deciding to locum around the country. Locuming opportunities have given Callum an appreciation of the differences and similarities in pharmacy practice and healthcare across the country, working with great teams and in great communities.

Callum serves on the PSNZ Wellington Branch committee, the PSNZ Early Career Pharmacist Network and the Pharmacy Defence Association.

Callum’s goal is to leave the pharmacy profession in a better position than when he entered.

Amanda Stanfield

Amanda is a Community Pharmacist and Pharmacy owner. She is aware of the challenges currently faced by both Pharmacy owners and Pharmacists.

During her Pharmacy career, she has been on a wide range of boards and committees and has a clear understanding of governance, finance and strategy. After being involved with the Wellington Branch of PSNZ as both a committee member and Chair, she was elected to the inaugural PSNZ National Executive in 2005. Amanda has also served as a Board member, Vice Chair and Chair on the PDA Board, and have recently been appointed to the NZPERF Board.

Amanda is currently on the Pharmac Tender Clinical Advisory Committee (TCAC) and works with the Pharmacy Council doing Law and Ethics Interviews.

Some of Amanda’s highlights during her time in Pharmacy include; being involved in the development of the first set of Competence Standards for Pharmacy, advising on the Special Authority Lookup website, being in the first group of Pharmacist Vaccinators, receiving a PSNZ Fellowship award for contribution to the advancement of Pharmacy in NZ and working on a committee to develop the Minor Ailment Service pilot in the Hutt Valley.

Co-opted members

Samantha Burgess

Samantha is the 2020 New Zealand Primary Healthcare Awards - Pharmacy Technician of the Year winner.

Samantha has been working “on the Ground floor” in New Zealand Pharmacy as a Pharmacy Technician Level 5 and 6 and a Pharmacy Accuracy Checking Technician (PACT) for over 10 years.  Samantha completed her training while working on the front line for Green Cross Health at Life Pharmacy Coastlands where she has also been Dispensary Manager for the last 3 years. 

Samantha has been at the forefront of change for pharmacy technicians and is honoured to be the first Pharmacy Technician on the National Executive for the Society.  Being the first represented Technician Samantha brings a unique voice to the National Executive, she is passionate about supporting the technician position and pathways in which we can grow the profession to help colleagues and our communities.