Welcome to the GICS Team
Welcome to the GICS Team
We are very pleased to welcome four new members to the GICS team; Maggie, Ashlee, Fiona & Grace.
This is great news for our region with the appointment of Ashlee Hendy & Maggie Johnson, Service Improvement Facilitators, based at the Wimmera Cancer Centre in Horsham. This recruitment marks a significant step in building a stronger regional footprint, strengthening our local presence and helping us better support communities across the Wimmera.
Horsham provides a great base for our team to work closely with health services / partners in the west of the Grampians region, allowing us to be more connected, more responsive and develop a greater understanding of local needs.
The commencement of Fiona Hodder, Deputy Program Manager, and Grace Lidgerwood, Senior Data & Information Analyst, provides opportunities for increased leadership and data intelligence within the GICS team.
Our new recruits bring a diverse range of skills and fresh ideas, and they’re already making valuable connections across the region. We’re delighted to welcome our new team members and look forward to the positive impact our expanded regional presence will have.
Find out more about our newest members of the team below:
Fiona Hodder
Deputy Program Manager
Fiona commenced in May 2026, and provides leadership and support to the GICS team and the broader VICS network, in the delivery of the Victorian Cancer Plan.
Fiona provides input both locally, and at a statewide level, on many operational activities implementing cancer service improvement projects, including design, planning, execution, evaluation and reporting.
Career Achievements
As some will know, Fiona has worked with the GICS team in recent times, to lead the Colonoscopy Access Project – a system wide project and improvements to colonoscopy access and triage, supporting safer, timelier care for patients across Grampians Health by strengthening referral pathways, triage processes, and performance monitoring within Integrated Cancer Services.
Additionally, Fiona has worked as a COVID 19 State Vaccination and Testing Clinical Lead – leading a team of clinical and non-clinical staff in providing and supporting the establishment and management of large scale vaccination and testing services, ensuring safe, efficient delivery and compliance with rapidly evolving public health requirements and timely community access during the pandemic.
And last but not least, Fiona contributed to the development and implementation of the BA@Phoenix program, an innovative higher education model delivering a Bachelor degree in a community based setting tailored to the learning needs for students missed in education system, under privileged youth and general community members.
Fun Fact
I always have a holiday booked before returning from a holiday (always have something to look forward to). And I have a love for goats!
Family Life
Fiona is a wife, and a mum of 2 (adult) boys and 1 dog (German short-haired pointer).
We have a small hobby farm with the main highlight of 3 free-range goats that just roam around the property.
I have an absolute love for baking and love to try new ideas and recipes, downside – my husband and children don’t have a sweet tooth, so I tend to eat most myself!
Ashlee Hendy
Cancer Service Improvement Facilitator
Ashlee commenced with the GICS team in April 2026, and is based in Horsham at the Wimmera Cancer Centre. Ash will be responsible for developing and delivering projects that optimise cancer care and improve services and experiences for patients and carers in the Horsham and surrounding Western Victoria region.
Career Achievements
Ash comes from an academic background, where she worked as a lecturer and health researcher at Deakin University in the School of Exercise and Nutrition Science. She has a PhD in neurophysiology and has published approx. 50 scientific journal articles investigating the effects of exercise on neural plasticity and brain health. After moving to Natimuk in 2020 and starting her family, Ashlee developed a desire to contribute locally to rural healthcare. She is excited to bring her existing skills and eagerness to learn and grow to the VICS team.
Fun Fact
Ash has been a keen rock climber for over 25 years, a passion that prompted her and her husband Chris to make a permanent move to the Wimmera six years ago. When not in the office, she can be found exploring the vertical world in Gariwerd (Grampians) and Dyurrite (Mount Arapiles) with Chris and daughter Ella, who has been scrambling her way up and over rocks since she could crawl.
Achieving a Work-Life Balance
“Traditionally I have not done a great job of achieving a work life balance. It’s been very much all-or-nothing, working way too much for a decade, then pulling out of the workforce for ~3 years to be fully present for my daughter. I am hoping that this role will allow me to strike a balance between the two, maybe even with some extra ‘me-time’ on the side?”
Maggie Johnson
Cancer Service Improvement Facilitator
Maggie commenced with the GICS team in May 2026, and is based in Horsham at the Wimmera Cancer Centre. In this role she will work to improve access to and equity of cancer services in the Wimmera region.
Career Achievements
Maggie was invited to present her research on gambling industry donations in front of the Parliamentary Committee on Political Donations to help inform policy changes to address industry influence.
Fun Fact
I am a highly skilled dog sitter for extremely large dog breeds.
Achieving a Work-Life Balance
River walks amongst beautiful Wimmera wildlife is my latest hobby.
Grace Lidgerwood
Senior Cancer Data & Business Analyst
Grace commenced with the GICS team in July 2026 and has been employed in a job share role with GICS and HRICS. Her role provides strategic advice in health data governance, analytics and reporting, with the goal to support evidence-based planning, service improvement, and organisational decision-making. Grace will be involved in managing and analysing large health datasets, maintaining databases, and developing informative dashboards and visualisations to communicate GICS and HRICS insights to diverse stakeholders. It will also involve establishing and fostering collaborations with internal and external stakeholders to standardise reporting, improve data capability through education and support, and promote effective use of data for quality improvement and research.
Career Achievements
Grace started her biomedical research career at the Peter Mac before moving into neurosciences, where she has worked for the past 12 years at the University of Melbourne.
She has a PhD in Biomedicine and a Master of Public Health with a specialisation in Biostatistics. She is passionate about using data in ways that can inform health promotion programs, service design and delivery improvements, and understanding patterns of disease across the region. She has been a sessional tutor for the Doctor of Medicine program (University of Melbourne) and has been a lecturer for the Bachelor and Master of Biomedicine degrees.
Fun Fact
Grace grew up in regional Victoria (Wangaratta), so rural health is close to her heart. She currently lives with her family in Geelong and spends her summers by the beach (Torquay and Barwon Heads are her go-to spots).
Family Life
Grace is a mum of two little kids – Leo (6) and Nina (3) – and a fur-mum to a cavoodle named George. Her husband Damian also used to work for GICS and HRICS.
