We're a small community practice, governed by an experienced board who are full of heart & community spirit. We're every-day people, helping our friends stay safe & healthy. Originally, the Oxford Community Health Centre was founded by a local GP and then in November 2005, the Oxford Health Charity Trust was formed to govern our ongoing community service & facilities. The Trust is an organisation made up of volunteer Board Directors who recognise & value the need to support & provide a comprehensive medical service.
We pride ourselves on you and your whānau and that you will have access to a safe cultural setting and quality general practitioners, experienced nurses and wrap-around wellness support once enrolled.
DOCTORS
Judith Millar – Clinical Director
Judith has led the clinical team as Clinical Director since 2014. She provided locum services throughout
New Zealand in 2006 & loved it so much she returned in 2007 to join the team in Oxford. She was
raised in Coleraine in Northern Ireland & gained her medical degree at the University of Glasgow, Scotland. Her post-graduate training includes Accident and Emergency, Ophthalmology and General Practice. Judith has been an integral part of the development of the model of care for the Oxford Community and continues to advocate for equitable service provision for this rural community. Judith loves seeing patients of all age groups & is keen to continue her interests in Ophthalmology and Palliative care.
Judith has a special interest in women's health, including the fitting of the Mirena intra-uterine device.
Dr Savannah Da Silva
Savannah (she/her) moved to Aotearoa from England in 2020 and has worked in primary care ever since. She was born in the North of England, completing her undergraduate training at the University of Sheffield before moving on to do post graduate training in Accident & Emergency, Obstetrics and General Practice. Being of mixed heritage, Savannah is passionate about improving health outcomes for people from minority backgrounds, with interests in urgent care, reproductive health and LGBTQ+ healthcare. Outside of work she has a young family and a menagerie of animals to keep her hands full.
Richard Clinghan (MB ChB, FDRHMNZ FRNCGP)
Richard grew up in Northern Ireland and trained in Scotland. His family have lived in New Zealand since 2010. Interests include general medicine, men's health, minor surgery (skin lesion removal, toenail operations) and steroid injections.
He teaches first year General Practitioner Registrars for the College both in clinic and across Canterbury.
Dr Merope Griffin
Merope was born in Armagh, and spent her formative years between Northern Ireland, the United States, New Zealand and the United Kingdom. She completed medical school in Yorkshire, and after a few years working in NHS hospitals, made the move from Central London to Greymouth in 2022, working in the Emergency Department before entering GP training. Merope has an interest in oncology and palliative care, and has completed a Postgraduate Diploma in Precision Cancer Medicine. She also has a special interest in the care of people with intellectual disabilities. Outside of medicine, Merope enjoys tramping, scuba diving and open water swimming. She is an avid reader, and always looking for book recommendations.
General Manager
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Donovan Percy
Donovan is a South African born New Zealander who together with his family made New Zealand their home in 2008. He completed his post graduate studies across the disciplines of Clinical Neuropsychology, Business Administration and Corporate Strategy in South Africa, prior to moving to New Zealand. He has worked in primary healthcare management for several years, along with extensive corporate management experience both in New Zealand and abroad.
Donovan is passionate about patient care, and views primary healthcare as a critical driver to tackling the inequalities which nationwide health is facing. Rural practice in this context adds a quality which is invaluable and is the substance that he supports and identifies with.
Donovan enjoys exercise and the outdoors. He especially loves spending time with his family and visiting the hidden treasures located all over New Zealand.
Nurse Practitioners & Nurse Prescribers
Gemma Bellamy - Nurse Practitioner
Gemma completed her Registered Nurse training at the University of Auckland and spent 10 years working in Urgent Care. Gemma moved to Canterbury and completed her Masters of Nursing in 2022 and became registered as a Nurse Practitioner at the end of 2022. She works with us in the General Practice team every Thursday and also continues to work in Urgent Care.
Carol Melek - Nurse Prescriber
Carol has a background in acute nursing and even completed some of her student hours at the practice some years ago. She enjoys the Oxford Community and is passionate about delivering great primary health care to patients within the community.
PRACTICE ADMINISTRATOR
Robyn Salton
Robyn’s wealth of knowledge and experience makes her the perfect Practice Administrator. The practice
benefits from her background in HR & Personnel prior to joining the health centre team.
Robyn oversights the reception team as well as providing day-to-day administrative support to the Practice.
Clinical Assistant
Amelia Molloy-Bland
Amelia has joined the Practice in 2023 in a new role to assist the Clinical team with their ever-increasing administrative work .
PRACTICE NURSES
Lin Thomson - Nurse Manager
Lin leads the nursing team as Rural Practice Nurse with over 30 years’ experience in a wide range of
disciplines. She gained surgical & orthopaedic experience while travelling & working overseas. Lin is
highly trained in accident & emergency, vaccinations, cervical screening and diabetic management. Lin
has lived locally most of her life & is a respected figure within the community.
Sue Dalley
Sue is a hospital trained nurse with more than 20 years of nursing experience. Throughout her nursing career, she has specialised in cardiology and oncology, but most of her extensive experience has been as a Rural Practice Nurse at Oxford. She considers herself nearly a ‘local’ to Oxford having lived in the area of Springbank all her life. Sue shares her time between the District Nursing team and the Practice Nursing team.
Jane Fraser - Health Care Assistant
Jane joined the team in 2012 as a Medical Receptionist ad has recently taken on the newly formed role
of Health Care Assistant. She completed her nursing training at Christchurch Hospital and qualified as a
Registered General Obstetric Nurse in 1984. Jane will be contacting patients regarding immunisations,
smears & blood tests as well as providing support to the nursing team. Jane is passionate about rural life and family.
Marjolein Hicks
Marjolein has been a permanent member of our Practice Nursing team since 2020. Marjolein particularly enjoys seeing patients for wound care, immunisations, infusions and acute care needs.
Katie Reeve
Katie is a new graduate who has joined our Practice Nursing Team in 2024. Katie will be in the Practice four days a week and is looking forward to meeting and working with our patients.
Erin Mitchell
Erin has joined the team as a Practice Nurse and District Nurse. She has previously worked in Christchurch Hospital for 3 years specialising in Oncology and Gastroenterology patients before coming to Oxford Community Health Centre. During her nursing career Erin has always wanted to work in the rural community. Erin grew up around the Oxford area and she currently lives on a farm that her partner manages.
DISTRICT NURSES
Mandy Purslow
Mandy is an Essex girl from the United Kingdom. She has a passion for wound care, specialising in leg ulcers and has experience with patients suffering from lymphoedema. In her down time Mandy enjoys knitting and caring for her animals on her lifestyle block. Mandy has joined the team to assist both the Practice Nursing team and the District Nursing Team.
Nikki Mason
Nikki has joined the team as a Rural District Nurse and has worked at OCHC previously as an RNS over the weekends. Her passion is the rural community and after a break of a few years in suburbia as a Nurse Manager, has come back to doing what she loves.
Nikki has lived in the area for the last 5 years on a lifestyle block collecting cats, chickens and cows, much to her husband's dismay! To relax, you'll either find her up a mountain or in a Pilates studio where she goes to let off steam.
RECEPTION & ADMINISTRATION
Susan Mason
Susan joined the team in 2019 as a part-time medical receptionist. She also works in the office at the Oxford Hospital. Susan moved from the UK in 2006 and has lived in Oxford since. She enjoys the small town country lifestyle, helping people and being a member
of the community.
Sidsel Rosager
Sidsel joined the Health Centre team in 2021 working in the COVID immunisation clinics and liked it so much she became part of the permanent reception team. Sidsel originally came from Sweden and enjoys living locally raising her kids, being involved in sports and biking, running and tramping in our areas beautiful native forests and mountains.
Lisa Boswell
Lisa lives on a lifestyle block in Oxford and has been a resident of the town for more than 30 years. Lisa has worked locally in reception, retail and administration positions whilst raising her children who are now young adults. Lisa loves living and working in the rural community and is enjoying being a part of the local medical centre.
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Pam Davies
Pam joined the reception team at the beginning of October 2023. She comes to us with a varied background of working in reception for private medical specialists and previously providing customer services support at Air New Zealand. Pam has also run her own Beauty Therapy business and has been a Dental Chairside assistant. Pam and her husband moved into the Oxford township several years ago from a lifestyle block. They are loving the beautiful rural town of Oxford and its surrounds not to mention the friendly residents. Pam can often be seen walking her black labrador around the township and alongside the rivers.
ALLIED HEALTH
Jan - Health Coach
Jan's role is simply to help improve your health and wellbeing. This could be to help prevent diseases or to reduce their impact on your life: preventable diseases such as diabetes, heart disease, stroke, alzheimers, high cholesterol, chronic fatigue etc. To do this Jan can walk alongside you to make a plan to improve your nutrition, ideas to exercise a little more, help with sleep routines, and stress and anxiety relievers. Jan has lived locally in Eyrewell on a chicken and beef finishing farm for the past 8 years, prior to that Jan lived at Clarence with my husband and 2 daughters, where they ran a beekeeping business.
LIZ - Health Improvement Practitioner (HIP)
The HIP service is free! While a single visit is often all that is needed, you can choose to return for another visit when you think it will help. I work part-time with people of all ages and backgrounds. I am a New Zealand trained Registered Nurse and hold a Masters in Social Work. I have worked across a wide range of specialist mental health, family, and community-based services.
For all of us, life will have times when we are facing medical, psychological and relationship challenges. My role is to ask lot of questions, listen carefully and develop a shared understanding of the most pressing problem you are struggling with. Together we develop a plan for you to get life back on track.
GOVERNANCE
Tracie Miller
Murray Taggart
Megan Quinn
Mark Brown (Chairman)
Amanda Ng
Samantha Samuel
Curt Ward