Chair 

Katie Smith
Nurse Unit Manager, Day Cancer Centre, Royal Children's Hospital

Katie Smith leads a specialised team that delivers complex paediatric oncology care in a high‑acuity ambulatory setting. As a statewide and national referral centre, the Day Cancer Centre provides treatments uniquely available at the Royal Children’s Hospital, drawing patients from metropolitan Melbourne, regional Victoria, and interstate. Katie brings over 25 years of paediatric nursing experience across Australia and the United Kingdom. In addition to her RCH role, Katie is the Statewide Project Lead for the Victorian Paediatric Clinical Network (VPCN) and Deputy Chair of the ANZCHOG Nursing Committee. With a background in paediatric oncology, emergency nursing, and service development, Katie is committed to building capability, modernising models of care, and championing initiatives that support safer, more coordinated, and more equitable healthcare for children and their families.

Speaker

Mrs Amanda Mandie OAM
Volunteer Executive Director, Koala Kids Foundation

In 2005, Amanda founded Koala Kids with her son Nick Mandie, after he had his Bar Mitzvah and decided to start a benevolent program with moneys he had been gifted. Nick was hoping to provide holiday experiences for siblings of young children with cancer. His idea quickly grew into family-centred care and before too long, Koala Kids was providing basic art and craft items to the Children’s Cancer Centres at The Royal Children’s Hospital and Monash Children’s Hospital. Today, Koala Kids volunteers provide small things that make a difference to the lives of more than 2,000 children and young people during cancer treatment in Victoria each year, their families and their healthcare team.