Barbara Rohde

Barbara began her working life as a primary teacher and later re-trained in library and information management before returning to academia after winning an industry-sponsored PhD scholarship to investigate the factors that influence young women going into IT. While writing up her dissertation she was diagnosed with breast cancer which effectively ended her PhD due to long term side effects from chemotherapy. This motivated her studies in Public Health and her foray into consumer representation.

Barbara now sits on several national committees as a consumer representative including Cancer Australia and Genesis Care. With chemotherapy leaving her with sensitivities to numerous drugs, Barbara is particularly interested in digital health which she sees as not only making Australia’s health system more efficient and effective but also in giving consumers greater control over their own health. She believes consumers need to be at the heart of all decision-making by health organisations.

Barbara has lived experienced of breast cancer, asthma, collagenous colitis, depression and anxiety as well as caring for a parent with dementia.

Lived experience – Older Australians; People with chronic diseases; Mental health

Areas of particular interest – Digital health literacy; My Health Record; my health app; Interoperability, and Electronic prescriptions