Digital technology is traditionally a male-dominated field, but one Mater leader is blazing a trail for women in the industry.

Mater’s Director of Digital Health and Informatics, Jayne Barclay, has just received a 2022 Brilliant Women in Digital Health Award.

The awards are presented by Telstra Health and celebrate the achievements of outstanding women in the digital health sector.

Jayne was nominated by Chief Digital Officer Alastair Sharman and A/Prof Mike Beckmann, Chief Digital Health Officer, for her leadership in implementing several innovative projects that have enhanced patient care across Mater.

“I was very surprised to learn about the award, but also very grateful,” Jayne said.

“It can be challenging to be a woman working in this space – often when the word digital is used there’s an assumption that men have a higher ability to perform the job.

“But I have managed to increasingly demonstrate the value of diversity in my role and Mater has a great culture that allows you to pursue ideas and initiatives that help to improve care for our patients.

“Women can definitely get ahead and make a huge difference in digital health.”    

Jayne was raised in Rockhampton and began her career in medical imaging, before turning her focus to clinical informatics and digital health.

She joined Mater in 2017 and was instrumental in the development of Mater’s “virtual” COVID-19 care monitoring system, which enabled more than 5000 referred patients to be cared for by Mater at Home – taking significant pressure off the hospital system during the pandemic.

More recently, she has led the implementation of Teledoc – Australia’s first emergency neonatal telehealth support system – at Mater’s Mackay and Rockhampton hospitals.

“From a young age I was interested in working in healthcare and started my career as a radiographer,” Jayne said.

“Growing up in a regional city, access to specialist care and services was an issue that challenged my immediate family, and I am driven by the opportunities digital health creates to help advance health equity.”