Council

Jump to specific Council Members by clicking on a name in the list below.

Council Members

President
Rodney Cooter, MBBS, MD (Adel), FRACS

Associate Professor Rodney Cooter works as a private plastic surgeon in Adelaide where he performs a range of cosmetic and reconstructive surgical procedures but has a specialty interest in breast surgery.

Completing medical school in 1983, he undertook research in the Australian Craniofacial Unit and was awarded his Doctorate in Medicine in 1991.  After completing further training here and abroad, he gained a Fellowship of the Royal Australasian College of Surgeons (FRACS) in plastic and reconstructive surgery in 1993.  Associate Professor Cooter has worked as a senior lecturer in Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery at the University of Adelaide, and as Head of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery at the Queen Elizabeth Hospital.  From 1997 to 2002 he was the Director of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery at the Royal Adelaide Hospital, and an Associate Professor at the University of Adelaide.

He has maintained an interest in education and research with over 50 publications including two books and book chapters.

Over the past six years Associate Professor Cooter has been closely involved with both the Australasian Society of Aesthetic Plastic Surgery (Councillor 2005-2008) and the Australian Society of Plastic Surgeons (Councillor 2005-2011, President 2001- ).  Since 2007 Associate Professor Cooter has been Chairman of the Development Committee for the Australasian Plastic Surgical Education and Research Foundation.

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Vice President / Treasurer
Geoffrey Lyons, FRACS

Geoff Lyons is a Plastic and Reconstructive surgeon based in the west and south west of Sydney.  He has many years experience in all areas of the specialty, with special interest in cosmetic surgery, reconstructive surgery, skin cancer surgery and hand surgery.

After graduating from medicine at the University of NSW, he commenced his surgical training at St Vincent’s Hospital, Sydney, where he proceeded from General Surgical training to complete the Microsurgical Fellowship at the Prince of Wales Hospital and then on to the Plastic and Reconstructive Surgical training scheme. Completing his FRACS in 1990, he undertook post graduate training at Canniesburn Hospital in Glasgow, Scotland.

On his return from overseas, he became a consultant at Westmead and Auburn Public Hospitals, and worked in several different areas in the greater west and south west of Sydney, including Campbelltown, Penrith, Bowral, Five Dock, Burwood, Westmead and Auburn.

He is a member of the Royal Australasian College of Surgeons (RACS), the Australian Society of Plastic Surgeons (ASPS) and the Australasian Society of Plastic Surgery (ASAPS).  He has worked with Interplast in Fiji.  He was a member of the Cosmetic Credentialling Committee established by the NSW Government to determine guidelines for the practice of cosmetic surgery, and chairman of the Liposuction Subcommittee.  He was also a member of the organizing committee of the 2003 International Plastic, Reconstructive and Aesthetic Surgery Meeting held in Sydney.  He served on the council of ASAPS as treasurer for four years from 2003 to 2007, and has been a member of ASPS council since 2007, currently holding the position of treasurer.

In addition to being Honorary Treasurer Geoffrey is also Chair of the Finance Committee.

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Honorary Secretary
Anthony Kane, FRACS

Dr Kane is a graduate of The University of Queensland having attained his degree in 1988 with Honours. He then went on to do basic training in surgery and began his training in Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery at The Princess Alexandra Hospital.

He completed his training in Plastic Surgery at the Royal Brisbane Hospital and in Melbourne. Dr Kane was admitted to the Royal Australasian College of Surgeons as a Plastic and Reconstructive Surgeon in 1997. He received a Fellowship in Hand and Reconstructive Microsurgery from St Vincent’s Hospital, Melbourne. In 1997 he travelled to Oxford in the UK where he did a further year’s training in breast surgery, rhinoplasty and microsurgery. During this time he regularly visited The Wellington Hospital in London to update his training in cosmetic surgery with a particular emphasis in facial rejuvenation and rhinoplasty. 

Dr Kane returned to Brisbane in 1998 and has been in both private and public practice since. He visits The Wesley, Mater Misericordiae and St Andrew’s War Memorial hospitals as well as The Princess Alexandra Hospital. He is also involved in training plastic surgeons, general practitioners and medical students. 

Dr Kane is trained in all aspects of Plastic, Reconstructive and Cosmetic surgery. He has interests in microsurgical reconstruction of the head and neck, breast and lower limb as well as skin cancer and cosmetic surgeries of the breast, abdomen and the face. He is a member of the Queensland and Australian Society of Plastic Surgeons, the Australasian Head and Neck Society and the Australian Society of Aesthetic Plastic Surgeons and is a current member of the AMA. 

In addition to being Honorary Secretary of ASPS he is also Chair of the CPD Committee.

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Council Member
Garry Buckland, B.Med.(Hons), FRACS

Dr Buckland is a consultant specialist in plastic, cosmetic and reconstructive surgery with extensive experience in all aspects of the specialty.

He is a Fellow of the Royal Australasian College of Surgeons (FRACS), a member of the Australian Society of Plastic Surgeons (ASPS) and the Australian Society of Aesthetic Plastic Surgeons (ASAPS). 

Dr Buckland graduated from the University of Newcastle in 1987 with first class honours and the University Medal. He initially trained at the Prince of Wales Hospital in Randwick and obtained his FRACS in General Surgery. He then undertook further post fellowship training in the subspecialty of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery, obtaining his second FRACS. 

In addition to being ASPS Vice President he is also Chair of the Ethics Committee.

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Council Member
Hugh Bartholomeusz RFD, MBBS, FRACS

Hugh Bartholomeusz was educated at Brisbane State High School and attended the University of Queensland where he obtained his basic medical degrees in 1976. He undertook further advanced surgical training in Plastic Surgery at Princess Alexandra Hospital, Royal Brisbane Hospital and the Queen Elizabeth Hospital in Adelaide. He established a private specialist practice in Brisbane and Ipswich in 1985 and was appointed as a Visiting Plastic Surgeon to the Ipswich General Hospital in that year. He is currently Head of the Plastic Surgery Unit at Greenslopes Private Hospital.

He has been involved in many local community activities, serving as a past Chair of the Medical Executive Committee and a member of the Board of Advice of St Andrews Hospital Ipswich and Chair of the National Trust Restoration Committee for St Paul’s Anglican Church. He has served as President of the Ipswich/Amberley Support Group and Chair of the Friends of University of Queensland Ipswich. He was Chair of the Council of West Moreton Anglican College from its foundation in 1992 until 2004.

Dr. Bartholomeusz takes great pride in his military experience, serving as a Commissioned Officer in the Royal Australian Air Force since 1972. He currently holds the rank of Air Commodore and is Director General Health Reserves- Air Force and Assistant Surgeon General ADF (Air Force). He currently Chairs the Consultative Group in Burns, Plastic Surgery and Dermatology and has also been involved with the Australian Air Force Cadets for over forty years. During this time he has served as Secretary of the National Council of the Australian Air Force Cadets, Deputy Chair of the Queensland Regional Council and Officer Commanding 2 Wing AAFC. He is a past World President of the International Air Cadet Exchange Association.

From 1995 to 2008 Dr. Bartholomeusz was C.E.O. of Tri Rhosen Day Hospital, the first multi-disciplinary freestanding Day Hospital in the Ipswich and West Moreton Region.  He has served as Vice President of the Australasian Day Surgery Association and is past President of the Queensland Society of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgeons and is currently an elected member of the Council of the Australian Society of Plastic Surgeons. He is past Chair of the Queensland Branch of the RACS and the current representative of the Royal Australasian College of Surgeons and the Australian Society of Plastic Surgeons on the Australian Day Surgery Council. He is an Australian representative on the International Association of Ambulatory Surgery and Secretary of the Australian Day Surgery Council as well as an elected member of the Executive Committee of the International Association of Ambulatory Surgery.

His hobbies include cricket, golf and fishing.  He and his wife Helga have three adult children, two grandchildren, and live in Brisbane.

In addition to being a council member Hugh is also Chair of the Fees Committee.

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Council Member
Heather Cleland, MBBS, FRACS

Heather Cleland graduated from the University of Melbourne and completed her specialty plastic surgery training in Perth and Brisbane.

She spent a post fellowship year at St Vincent’s in Melbourne, and then went to the Hospital for Sick Children in Toronto for a paediatric plastic surgery clinical fellowship year in clefts and reconstructive microsurgery.

Heather is currently a visiting plastic surgeon and head of the Victorian Adult Burns Service at the Alfred Hospital in Melbourne, and head of the Department of Plastic and Maxillofacial Surgery at the Royal Children’s Hospital in Melbourne.

She is a member of the Court of Examiners of the Royal Australasian College of Surgeons and Adjunct Senior Lecturer in the Department of Surgery, Monash University.

In addition to being an ASPS council member Heather is also a member of the Medical Advisory Board of the Donor Tissue Bank of Victoria, the Surgical Advisory Committee of Interplast Australia and the Victorian Surgical Consultative Council.

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Council Member
Chair of the Board of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery
Richard Bloom, MBBS (Hons), FRACS

Mr Richard Bloom is a specialist plastic surgeon. With expertise in all areas of plastic and reconstructive surgery, his particular interests include breast surgery, facial rejuvenation, and body contouring surgery, particularly for patients who have experienced a massive weight loss.

Having trained in all major plastic surgery centres in Melbourne, including The Alfred, St Vincents, The Royal Children’s Hospital and The Royal Melbourne Hospital, Richard attained his fellowship in plastic surgery from the Royal Australasian College of Surgeons in 2002. He then undertook further training in hand surgery at the Pulvertaft Hand Centre in Derby UK, and cosmetic surgery in San Francisco, prior to commencing practice as a plastic surgeon in Melbourne in 2003.

In addition to his private practice within ARC Plastic Surgery, in East Hawthorn, Richard has a public appointment at The Alfred Hospital, where he serves on the Victorian Melanoma Service, and is chief investigator for the Multicentre Sentinel Lymphadenectomy Trial II, an international trial examining the management of melanoma. He is also responsible for the recent establishment of a multidisciplinary Breast Care Unit at The Alfred Hospital, which combines the expertise of various health professionals to treat patients diagnosed with breast cancer, and to offer them the opportunity for breast reconstruction.

An active member of the ASPS, Richard has been the Victorian Board Chairman for the last three years and was recently elected to be the National Board Chairman in Plastic surgery for the Royal Australasian College of Surgeons. Richard has previously served as the younger member on council of the ASPS.

In his free time, Richard enjoys cycling, travelling, and spending time with his wife, Dr Lisa Freeman, a Cosmetic Physician at ARC Plastic Surgery, and their three children.

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Council Member
James Savundra, FRACS

Mr Savundra is a fully trained Plastic and Reconstructive Surgeon and commenced specialist practice in plastic, reconstructive and cosmetic surgery in 2001. He was a medical student at the University of Western Australia and completed his internship and residency in Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital. He then trained in plastic surgery in Perth, Melbourne and New York City.

Mr Savundra is currently a consultant plastic surgeon at Royal Perth Hospital, Fremantle Hospital, Princess Margaret Hospital for Children and Royal Perth Rehabilitation Hospital in Shenton Park. He sub-specialises in head and neck reconstructive surgery and hand surgery. James’ thoughts on commencing a group practice in plastic surgery in Western Australia began in 2002 and this group of surgeons opened its doors in 2007 as the Western Australian Plastic Surgery Centre, providing a comprehensive plastic, reconstructive and cosmetic surgery service.

Mr Savundra operates at St John of God Hospital Subiaco and Bethesda Hospital on a regular basis and he has accreditation at Hollywood Private Hospital, St John of God Hospital Murdoch and the Mount Hospital.

Mr Savundra is significantly involved in training future plastic and reconstructive surgeons and is the Western Australian Coordinator of Advanced Trainees in Plastic Surgery. He is the Supervisor of training in Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery at Royal Perth Hospital.  Mr Savundra is a co-opted member of the Council of the Australian Society of Plastic Surgeons, the main professional body for all Australian Plastic Surgeons.

Mr Savundra has been actively involved in Interplast Australia since 2001 and has been on voluntary plastic surgery missions to Tonga (2001), Sri Lanka (2002), Kiribati (2004), Somalia (2005), Tanzania (2006), and the Philippines (2007; Helping Children Smile). This year he travelled to Laos with another Interplast team. The work on these trips includes congenital deformity and disfigurement, and severe burns contractures. 

James regularly lectures medical students, nurses and allied health staff on various aspects of plastic surgery. 

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Member
Co-opted Younger Fellow
Cameron MacKay FRACS

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Ex-Officio Members
Ex-Officio College Council Representative
Keith Mutimer, FRACS 

Mr. Keith Mutimer F.R.A.C.S (Fellow Royal Australasian College of Surgeons) is a fully qualified Plastic and Cosmetic Surgeon and is the former President of the Australian Society of Plastic Surgeons. He won a Commonwealth Scholarship to Monash University, and Prince Henry's Hospital Clinical School from which he graduated.

He obtained his Fellowship of the Royal Australasian College of Surgeons in plastic surgery in 1986. 

He is constantly upgrading his education with regular attendances at national and international conferences and workshops also giving lectures at seminars. 

His overseas training includes Harvard University, including the Children's Hospital, Brigham and Women's Hospital in Boston U.S.A. where he was the Chief resident of Plastic Surgery. He was also a Fellow in Plastic Surgery at Oxford University in England, a Locum Chief Surgeon at the Lautoka Hospital in Fiji and a resident under the Plastic Surgery Program at Emory University in Atlanta, Georgia, U.S.A. He studied Craniofacial Surgery at Enfant Malade Hospital in Paris. 

In Melbourne his surgical training include Prince Henry's Hospital, Western General Hospital, Victorian Plastic Surgery Unit in Preston and the Royal Melbourne Hospital. Mr. Mutimer currently operates from Brighton Private Cabrini Hospital, Epworth Private, Royal Children's Hospital and our own Day Surgery, Brighton Plastic Surgery Centre. 

Mr. Mutimer has interests with an organisation called Interplast which provides expertise in Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery to the people of the South Pacific and countries north of Australia. Mr. Mutimer has worked in countries such as China, Fiji, Tonga, the Phillipines, Vanuato and Vietnam which he returned to this year, with other surgical staff performing voluntary work on patients with cleft palates and establishing an ongoing program in Sri Lanka. 

Mr. Mutimer was the Deputy Director of Plastic and Maxillofacial Surgery at the Royal Children's Hospital where he worked from 1987-2003. He was the surgical supervisor of Plastic Surgery training and is actively involved in teaching Medical students. He is a Council Member of the Australian Society of Plastic Surgeons and has been invited to Argentina and Singapore to lecture Plastic Surgeons. 

Mr. Mutimer is a member of many specialist surgical groups including: Australasian Society of Aesthetic Plastic Surgery, Australasian Craniofacial and Maxillofacial Surgery Society, Australasian Cleft Lip and Palate Association, The American Society of Aesthetic Surgeons, American Society of Plastic Surgeons, and the International Society of Aesthetic Plastic Surgery. 

Mr Keith Mutimer is a Councillor and is the Honorary Treasurer of The Royal Australasian College of Surgeons, responsible for the Resources portfolio and representing Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery.

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Ex-Officio Member
Chair of the Board of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery
Richard Bloom, FRACS

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NZAPS President

Mr Howard Klein, FRACS 

Mr Klein graduated from the University of Louisville School of Medicine in the United States and received training in general surgery at McGill University in Canada. He completed plastic surgery training at Duke University.

Mr Klein is a fellow of the Royal Australasian College of Surgeons and the Royal College of Surgeons of Canada. He is also a fellow of the American College of Surgeons.

Mr Klein is certified by both the American Board of Plastic Surgery and the Medical Council of New Zealand.

Mr Klein is a member of the New Zealand Association of Plastic Surgeons, Australasian Society of Aesthetic Plastic Surgery, New Zealand Foundation for Cosmetic Plastic Surgery, American Society of Plastic Surgery, American Society of Aesthetic Plastic Surgery and the Canadian Society of Plastic Surgeons.

Mr Klein has rooms in Christchurch and Dunedin and he holds regular public clinics in Invercargill. He is a consultant surgeon at St. Georges Hospital, Southern Cross Hospital and Mercy Hospital in Dunedin. He is also an active member of the Plastic Surgery Unit at Christchurch Hospital.

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