Marlene Thomson

For more than 20 years Marlene has been an influential figure in occupational health.

A long-time member and office-holder of the New Zealand Occupational Health Nurses Association, she has been a respected mentor to many nurses.

Marlene joined the Department of Labour in 1990 as Chief Advisor – Nursing. In this role she was instrumental in the transfer of the occupational health function from the Department of Health to the Department of Labour.

Marlene was therefore a key figure in introducing the health side of health & safety into the Department of Labour.

In 1992 Marlene was appointed as Manager – Health & Technical, which saw her recruit a diverse group of specialist staff, including scientists, engineers and medical practitioners. In this role she continued to introduce a health viewpoint throughout the organisation.

Later in her career Marlene was appointed manager of marketing & communications, where she pioneered a social marketing approach to help engage employers and the wider public in the work of the Department of Labour to prevent deaths, injuries and illness arising from work.

She was one of the first to recognise the value of an integrated approach to occupational health and has striven consistently behind the scenes to this end, both at the Department of Labour and in her subsequent career with Parliamentary Services, and also with the NZOHNA.

She has always encouraged practitioners to further their education, and gained an MBA herself in 2002.

Marlene is a role model who is able to relate to all sectors of the health and safety community and is able to represent occupational health nursing at the highest level.

She remains active within the New Zealand Occupational Nurses Association, where this year she has taken on the role of professional development coordinator.

Marlene is an inspiration to occupational health nurses in New Zealand who has held senior strategic positions but has always remained true to her professional nursing background.

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