We recently farewelled one of the most influential people in Australia’s consumer health movement.
Kate Moore was known to many in WA as the Executive Director of the national peak, Consumers Health Forum (CHF), from 1991 until her retirement in 1999.
Michele Kosky, who was the first Executive Director of Health Consumers’ Council, said Kate was a singular woman of integrity and strong values.
“Kate’s leadership at CHF really set the landscape for the health consumer movement over many years. She was generous with her time, strategic in her work, trustworthy and a great believer in the strength of coalitions and collaborations.”
“In my experience with Kate (jokingly called Mission Control in the West), our tiny organisation between the Nullarbor and the Indian Ocean in the 1990s, she always had time to offer quiet advice and sound reasoning…and a good laugh.”
Former HCC Chair Anne McKenzie wrote that Kate “was a softly spoken powerhouse” who understood the complexities of health financing and the relationships between the Commonwealth and the states and territories.
Throughout her career Kate held a range of roles at local and national levels and was a strong advocate for social justice, addressing inequity and putting consumers at the centre of health policy.
Mitch Messer, one of HCC’s first Board Members, said Kate “was a champion of consumer involvement in health”. One of her many roles was as a member, and later Chair, of the ACT’s Health Care Consumers Association, who said “She brought a sophistication to advocacy with CHF and HCCA and was able to use her knowledge and connections to pave the way for consumer perspectives. Kate’s view was that not only do consumers bring an important perspective to policy and decision-making, they are also in a position to put forward an alternate view while Government maintains more neutral ground.”
Kate was guided by her personal values and was a pioneer in the idea of values focused leadership. She was passionately committed to consumer participation in health care and was a mentor and guide to many consumers with a light touch and a ready smile.
At HCC, we feel proud to be able to play a part in this work in WA.
We invite you to read more about Kate’s lasting legacy here and here. Rest in Peace Kate.