Breaking barriers: Australian Society of Ophthalmologists’ first woman CEO steps up

The Australian Society of Ophthalmologists welcomes Katrina Ronne as the first woman in its CEO role. (Image courtesy of the Australian Society of Ophthalmologists)

The Australian Society of Ophthalmologists (ASO) marked a milestone last month with the appointment of Katrina Ronne as its first woman chief executive officer (CEO) in the organization’s 43-year history. Ronne aims to lead with a culture of inclusivity and advocacy for equitable eye care access while empowering ophthalmologists. Her background in industrial relations, government policy, and community engagement uniquely positions her to drive strategic, member-focused change — from supporting gender parity and leadership pathways for women to developing educational platforms and advocating for sustainable healthcare workforce solutions. Ronne shares more in this interview with Ophthalmology Times.

Note: This transcript has been edited lightly for clarity.

As the first woman appointed CEO in the ASO’s 43-year history, how do you envision this milestone influencing the organization’s culture and direction?

I am honoured to be the first female CEO of the ASO.

Culture begins at the top, and I want the ASO to be an organisation that inspires inclusivity and the promotion of equitable access to safe and affordable eye health services for all Australians.

Sight is our most valued sense. I want ophthalmologists to be empowered and supported to deliver the best possible eye health care to Australian patients.

There are no limits to what Australian eye surgeons can achieve, only those created for them within the health paradigm.

Freeing our members from these inhibitors will allow them to continue with research, innovation, and excellence in ophthalmology.

Having served as the General Manager of Policy and Strategy, how will your previous experience shape your approach to leading the ASO as CEO?

I have always had an interest in business, especially where the relationships between employees, employers, and the institutions that support them intersect.

After graduating university — with a Bachelor of Business majoring in Industrial Relations — I began my career in this field with the Australian Salaried Medical Officers’ Federation Queensland (ASMOFQ), and later, Salaried Doctors Queensland (SDQ).

I learned about the dangers of sleep deprivation in young doctors and advocated for the promotion of safe working hours; interpreting and negotiating collective bargaining agreements for salaried doctors; and representing doctors on issues such as bullying and harassment in hospital settings.

Working in policy roles for the Queensland Government’s Department of Premiers offered insights into the process of government and the importance of consultation, as well as international comparisons, that are utilised in the development of government strategy.

While with the Premier’s Department, I accepted a role in the G20 Cultural Celebrations Team, which was tasked with delivering cultural activations across Brisbane City during the G20 Summit in 2014.

This project experience highlighted to me the power of community engagement and collaboration — especially how it can elevate advocacy efforts.

I have also had first-hand exposure to political campaigning, which deepened my understanding, especially of ‘motivations for change’ — an essential tenet to deliver effective advocacy.

When you bring these components together, you can understand the unique juxtapositions between healthcare delivery, government policy, and other key stakeholders, such as the public.

Being CEO carries an important responsibility to weigh all considerations and find measured and effective solutions that favour all parties involved, so intimately understanding the mechanisms of healthcare, government, and community will be advantageous to my success.

How do you plan to promote gender parity within the field of ophthalmology?

There are a number of initiatives already in play within an Australian context that promote gender parity in ophthalmology, which the ASO continues to support.

This includes elevating the profile of the Royal Australian and New Zealand College of Ophthalmology's (RANZCO) Women in Ophthalmology (WIO) initiative, especially its WIO tick — something everyone in our profession should be adopting for industry events.

When organizing conferences or events, you can apply to receive the RANZCO WIO tick by securing more than 35 percent female representation among your speakers. Not only is it an incentivized factor to make more considered choices around your event program, it raises the profile of WIO when featured at events.

We started implementing this at last year's ASO Skills Expo — an annual event that supports ophthalmologists in the delivery of private practice and the business of ophthalmology — and will continue to do so with all our events moving forward.

It may seem small, but all collective efforts will help us trend as an industry towards improved benchmarks where women are concerned.

At the ASO, we also place emphasis upon promoting our female members on their merits and achievements, which means recruiting women into more leadership roles at the ASO, such as myself and Dr Tricia Drew, who recently joined our Board of Directors.

As we see a 'changing of the guard' in the coming years, there will be more opportunities for women to join the ranks of the ASO.

In the meantime, we are encouraging those with an interest and passion for medico-politics to start becoming involved and learning the ropes to ready themselves.

What strategies do you intend to implement to enhance member engagement and address the evolving needs of ASO members?

Membership is my key focus. Ensuring the ASO is meeting the demands of our members and continuing to provide strong value is a key priority.

It will also be a goal of the ASO to educate and mentor trainees and new fellows in business skills.

This is vital to the continued success of the ophthalmology profession — being able to pass down the vast knowledge the ASO has developed over many years and across areas of practice development and advocacy.

In my first 12 months as CEO, I will be working to ensure the development and delivery of an online learning platform that will support the transfer of this knowledge in an accessible and inclusive way to all our members — regardless of where they live or when they work.

This platform may also allow the ASO to pass down skills in medico-political advocacy to ensure the future of the Society and its continued success.

With ongoing issues such as health workforce shortages and private health insurance reforms, how will the ASO under your leadership support ophthalmologists in adapting to these challenges?

Knowledge is power.

We will continue to equip our members with the knowledge of these market challenges to assist them in their business decision making.

Our ability to bring members together to network and share experiences is another advantage, learning from others’ experiences and changing their strategic direction.

However, the ASO holds great concern for the current localized approach to addressing widespread health workforce shortages in Australia.

We are doing our part to advocate to government — as are numerous other health bodies — for long-term solutions that prioritize the continued specialist training of Australian doctors and ensure our current standards of training and clinical practice are maintained and upheld.

The solutions currently being implemented or considered by government in Australia are temporary, at best, and are not necessarily in patients’ best interests.

Finding solutions that favor all parties is a challenge, but the ASO have never backed down from a challenge, and we won’t start now.

What is your long-term vision for the ASO, and how do you plan to steer the organization to achieve its goals in the coming years?

Our primary goal is patient advocacy.

This focus will continue to shape the healthcare environment in a way that protects patients’ right of choice and ensures world class outcomes — something the ASO will always stand behind.

For more information on ASO’s advocacy efforts, visit www.asoeye.org.