The authors
Steve Calder
Steve Calder
Steve Calder BSc BD DipMin is General Manager of Pastoral Care and Volunteer Services at HammondCare. He leads of a team of nearly 100 Pastoral Care and Volunteer Coordinators whose expertise guide initiatives that foster dignity across residential, home care and health services.
An ordained Anglican minister (1997) and former geologist, Steve joined HammondCare in 2014, working as a Pastoral Care Coordinator in the inpatient Palliative Care Unit at Sydney’s Greenwich Hospital. Steve brings a unique blend of practical insight and deep compassion to his work. and purpose. Steve is married to Sandra and is the proud dad of five adult sons – his favourite ‘team’.
Andrew Cole
Andrew Cole
Professor Andrew Cole MBBS(Hons) FAFRM is a senior rehabilitation medicine physician at HammondCare with a special interest helping older patients living with frailty, cancer and neurological problems. Andrew completed training in Rehabilitation Medicine in 1984 and has worked in hospital and community settings in both Sydney and East Asia.
Andrew also teaches and supervises medical students and trainee doctors in aged care and rehabilitation medicine and researched and written about the value of rehabilitation therapy in people living with cancer and in palliative care settings.
In 2017, he received a prestigious award from the International Society of Physical and Rehabilitation Medicine in recognition of his strong engagement in rehabilitation teaching and learning in international settings.
Emily Colombage
Emily Colombage
Emily Colombage BSc (Nutrition)(Hons) APD is an Accredited Practising Dietitian with over a decade of experience supporting the nutritional needs of older adults working as part of HammondCare's Clinical Care & Practice team. Being an author is not new for Emily – in 2014 she co-authored Don’t Give Me Eggs That Bounce, published by HammondCare, a groundbreaking cookbook designed for people living with dementia.
Emily’s expertise includes clinical nutrition, aged care and dementia-friendly meal planning, making her a respected voice in the field of geriatric dietetics.Emily continues to advocate for better nutrition for older people through education, evidence-based practice, and collaboration with doctors and healthcare professionals. When she’s not working with clients or writing, Emily enjoys exploring new culinary ideas and sharing her knowledge to inspire healthier living for all generations.
Belinda Holst
Belinda Holst
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Belinda Holst is a respected leader in the volunteer sector, building strong, people-centred programs in the for-purpose and not-for-profit charity sector. Her career includes senior roles with HammondCare, where she led volunteer teams and championed the essential role volunteers play in aged care communities. Belinda holds a Certificate IV in Coordination of Volunteer Programs and has been an invited panel speaker with The Centre for Volunteering.
Belinda’s passion for service extends beyond her professional life. Belinda is currently a music festival volunteer with Red Frogs Australia, supporting people through safe‑space initiatives at major music events. Belinda enjoys a lively home with her husband, two teenagers and a much‑loved rabbit.
George El-Roueihib
George El-Roueihib
Dr George El-Roueihib BDTech BOralH (DentSci) GDipDent GDip ClinDent (Oral Implants) is a practising dentist, with a special interest in dental care for older people. He was also a dentist at HammondCare’s largest aged care site, which incorporates both retirement living and a residential care home. Now in suburban dental practice, George continues to provide person-centred oral health solutions to people of all ages.
When not at work, George is an active member in his church community, enjoys DIY projects at home and loves spending time with his son, especially at the beach.
Melanie Lovell
Melanie Lovell
Professor Melanie Lovell MBBS PhD FRACP FAChPM is a palliative medicine physician with HammondCare and Senior Academic in Hammond Innovations. She is also a Clinical Professor in Palliative Care at The University of Sydney’s Northern Clinical School and an Adjunct Professor at the University of Technology Sydney.
A widely published and respected researcher with expertise in cancer pain, she is the founding chair of Cancer Council Australia’s Australian Cancer Pain Management Guideline. Melanie is Chair of the Pain Node for Cancer Symptom Trials and Palliative Care Clinical Studies Collaborative. Her other research interest is in spiritual care.
Melanie enjoys tennis, ocean swimming, walking and spending time with family.
Steve Macfarlane
Steve Macfarlane
Associate Professor Steve Macfarlane MBBS(Hons) MPM FRANZCP CertOldAgePsych is Head of Clinical Services at HammondCare’s Dementia Support Australia service. He is a geriatric psychiatrist and past Chair of the Faculty of Psychiatry of Old Age for the Royal Australian and New Zealand College of Psychiatrists. He has held Director positions in two public hospital aged psychiatry services and remains involved in medical student and postgraduate teaching.
Steve has published over 50 peer-reviewed academic articles, has presented at international conferences, and has been active in Alzheimer's disease clinical trials for over 25 years. He continues to maintain a small private clinical practice and was co-editor of the BPSD Textbook.
Chris Poulos
Chris Poulos
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Professor Chris Poulos MBBS MSc PhD FAFRM is a rehabilitation medicine physician with over 30 years of clinical experience. He is Professor (Conjoint) in the Faculty of Medicine and Health at the University of New South Wales, Australia, and has published and presented widely on rehabilitation and aged care. Chris has overseen rehabilitation and aged care services within the NSW health system and is a Past-President of the Australasian Faculty of Rehabilitation Medicine within the Royal Australasian College of Physicians.
Chris established the Centre for Positive Ageing at HammondCare where he reframed the term ‘positive ageing’ to focus on the steps everyone can take to improve their ageing journey. He conceived the idea of writing a practical, accessible guide to ageing well, that ultimately led to The Positive Ageing Equation. Chris currently leads the Positive Ageing Research Program for Hammond Innovations.
Roslyn Poulos
Roslyn Poulos
Dr Roslyn Poulos MB BS MPH PhD FAFPHM is a public health physician, honorary Principal Research Fellow at HammondCare, and honorary Associate Professor in the School of Population Health at the University of New South Wales (UNSW). An academic at UNSW for more than 20 years, Roslyn enjoyed public health teaching and research and contributes to the facilitation of tutorials for Foundation Years medical students, as a sessional tutor at University of Notre Dame Australia, School of Medicine, in Sydney.
Roslyn has over 80 publications in scientific journals, with much of her work centred on ageing populations. She has published in the areas of reablement in dementia, rehabilitation at home, the role of the arts in ageing, injury and falls prevention, dementia caregiving and the health and aged care workforce.
Joel Rhee
Joel Rhee
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Associate Professor Joel Rhee BSc(Med) MBBS(Hons 1) GCULT PhD FRACGP is the Head of the Discipline of General Practice and the Medicine Program Assessment Lead at the University of New South Wales School of Clinical Medicine. He delivers medical care to older people in residential care alongside a research program focused on healthy ageing, primary palliative care, cancer care and advance care planning.
Joel is a specialist general practitioner with a PhD in Public Health and Community Medicine. He has authored more than 95 peer-reviewed publications and attracted over $32M in research funding. Joel chairs the Royal Australian College of General Practitioners Cancer and Palliative Care Specific Interests Network and contributes to several government and professional advisory committees on cancer care and lung cancer screening.
Gabriela Salabert
Gabriela Salabert
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Gabriela Salabert ClPsych SupPsy MAPS is the Bereavement Coordinator and Clinical Lead for Grief and Bereavement at HammondCare. She is a clinical psychologist and psychotherapist with over 30 years of experience in Sydney’s public and private counselling and mental health sectors. Since 1991, Gabriela has trained clinicians in areas including attachment across the lifespan, intergenerational trauma, perinatal health, and cross-cultural counselling and mental health.
Gabriela’s integrative, mind–body approach is informed by evidence-based therapies and a Graduate Diploma in Dance Movement Therapy. She is an accredited Australian Health Practitioner Regulation Agency supervisor and an active member of the Australian Psychological Association (APS) College of Clinical Psychologists and APS Sydney Committee.
Charlotte Salusinszky
Charlotte Salusinszky
Charlotte Salusinszky BA(Hons) is an actor, writer and theatre-maker, and Lead Artist Practitioner with HammondCare’s Arts on Prescription program. She graduated from the Victorian College of the Arts in 2017, where she completed her Honours year in Theatre Practice. Charlotte was a Shopfront Arts Co-op resident artist in 2019/20, where she wrote and performed Little Jokes in Times of War, an autobiographical solo performance about her family’s escape from Hungary.
In 2021, Charlotte was shortlisted for the Create NSW Theatre (Emerging) Fellowship with Griffin Theatre. This included three months of mentorship with Griffin to research her next major work, The Changelings. After further development through PACT Lab: Process, Play, Experiment in 2022, and a residency at Q Theatre in 2023, The Changelings premiered in 2024 at PACT Centre for Emerging Artists.
Philip Siddall
Philip Siddall
Dr Philip Siddall MBBS MMed(Pain Mgt) PhD FFPMANZCA has worked as a pain medicine specialist doctor for nearly 40 years at the Royal Prince Alfred, Royal North Shore and Greenwich Hospitals in Sydney, and Addenbrooke’s Hospital in Cambridge, England. Philip was also an academic at The University of Sydney, with a position as Conjoint Professor in Pain Medicine with a research focus on the management of neuropathic pain, particularly pain following spinal cord injury.
In recent years, Philip’s research focus has turned to the spiritual and existential aspects of pain, the phenomenon of post-traumatic growth and its application to living with chronic pain, spinal cord injury or terminal illness. He is a contributing author in numerous journal articles and book chapters as well as three books published by HammondCare – The Pain Book, The Spinal Cord Injury Pain Book and The Cancer Pain Book.