Senior New Zealand health department manager Sharon Brownie, gave her career another boost when she graduated from the Master of Health Services Management from Charles Sturt University at the Faculty of Health Studies ceremony on the Bathurst Campus on Thursday 13 April.

Sharon's career began as a Registered Nurse, but while Associate Head of Department of the School of Nursing and Health Studies at Manawatu Polytechnic, in Palmerston North, New Zealand she completed a Master of Education Administration with First Class Honours.

Shortly after she moved back into the health industry taking on marketing and commercial services before a planning and special projects executive appointment at Lakeland Health in Rotorua. Moving to the South Island, Sharon was the Professional Services Adviser, Healthlink South before most recently accepting an appointment as Regional Commissioner for Northland, Work & Income New Zealand.

Sharon's managerial experience in recent years has been diverse and exceptionally challenging. Her most recent senior public sector management appointment, coming as she did from outside the welfare area, was significant.

As a consequence of her abilities, academically and managerially, she has recently been successful in gaining a $40,000 Management Development Scholarship. That scholarship will enable Sharon to pursue general management and strategic leadership development at Stanford Graduate School of Business, Oxford and Harvard Universities, as well as a field visit to Northumbria Health Care in Newcastle, UK to visit a "Connected Government" project in action.