Meet our Team

Kerry Hooper

Principal Occupational Therapist

Our business founder and principal Occupational Therapist Kerry Hooper has worked as an Occupational Therapist since 2005 in a broad range of clinical and community settings. Kerry holds special interest in adult neurological conditions and the impact these conditions have on daily functional performance and capacity.

Kerry enjoys working in the field of neurodiversity and cognitive rehabilitation and employs a range of treatment approaches depending on individual needs. These can include structured rehabilitation modules targeting improvement of specific cognitive skills or use of adaptive strategies to help compensate for cognitive losses in the context of daily functioning.

Kerry is a member of OT Australia and is an AHPRA registered Occupational Therapist. She is ABAS accredited and has undertaken ongoing training in the special interest area of Trauma and its impact on functional performance and participation.

When not at work Kerry likes to keep fit and enjoys a wide range of outdoor activities with her active family.

Mandy Brown

Senior Occupational Therapist

Mandy has over 20 years of experience working as an OT within public health, not for profit and private sectors. She completed her OT degree at the University of Newcastle in 1996 and also holds a Master of Health Management.

She has experience in service development, clinical education and provision of occupational therapy to adults across many funding streams. Mandy enjoys working collaboratively with clients who have complex needs and enjoys meeting the distinctive challenges of her role. Her areas of interest are progressive degenerative diagnoses and complex assistive technology.

Mandy plays a key role in occupational therapy clinical supervision within the team and to undergraduate students.

When not at work, she is rarely bored, chasing around after her children and multiple animals, and anything else to avoid housework.

Lauren Catley

Occupational Therapist

Lauren joined as an Occupational Therapist at the start of 2022 following completion of her studies in Auckland, New Zealand where she obtained her Bachelor in Health Science of Occupational Therapy.
Lauren has since worked within the team providing clinical intervention with a wide variety of client groups including NDIS, HCP, DVA and private clientele.

Lauren enjoys her varied caseload, with a specific interest in young adult capacity building and mental health support.

When not at work, Lauren enjoys all things beach, adventure, and fun, exploring what Mackay and the Whitsundays has to offer.

Jesse Schmidtke

Occupational Therapist

Jesse is an Occupational Therapist who is passionate about tailoring therapy to the individual. Her areas of interest include social skills therapy, sensory processing, assistive technology and hydrotherapy. Jesse was born in Mackay with knowledge of local challenges and opportunities. Jesse
graduated from James Cook University in 2022 with a Bachelor of Occupational Therapy – Honours.

Jesse is an AHPRA registered Occupational Therapist who is committed to lifelong learning and implementation of new practise techniques. Jesse has worked with diverse adult caseloads and funding programs including the National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS), Home Care Package (HCP), Department of Veterans’ Affairs (DVA) and Short-Term Restorative Care (STRC).

Outside of work Jesse spends her time outdoors enjoying Mackay’s natural sites and trying to keep up with her golden retriever.

Clare Dick

Occupational Therapist

Clare is an Occupational Therapist who completed her Bachelor of Occupational Therapy with Honours from James Cook University, Townsville in 2022. Clare has interests in a variety of areas of Community Health including working with older people and functional rehabilitation.

Born in Mackay and completing most of her schooling here, Clare is passionate about servicing the local Mackay community and surrounding regions. Clare believes that there is no goal too big or small and is eager to connect with client to assist them to achieve their goals, no matter the size.

Renae Smith

Occupational Therapy Assistant

Renae is our Senior Occupational Therapy Assistant. Renae completed her Certificate 4 in Allied Health Assistant in 2002. Renae began her OT Assistant career with QLD Health in the adult rehabilitation setting and has extensive experience with neurological conditions. Renae’s role is to assist the clients of OT Mackay enhancing outcomes of individual therapy programs prescribed by our Occupational Therapists. Together with having collaborative goals and a holistic approach, being part of the OT Mackay team makes a positive difference in people’s lives.

In addition to her OT Assistant role, Renae provides quality supervision and mentorship to AHA students and Occupational Therapy work experience students.

Janine Schatkowski

Occupational Therapy Assistant

Janine is one of our OT assistants here at OTM. After completing her certificate IV in allied health assistance, Janine moved into paediatrics. She joined OT Mackay in 2023 to further enhance her learning and love for OT. Janine is also a full-time uni student, studying her bachelor’s degree in allied health.

Janine will often be seen in the office assisting in skill building, out and about in the community on home visits and also in the pool for hydrotherapy. Her eagerness to learn and further her skills does not go unrecognised here at OTM.

When not working or studying, Janine enjoys spending time at her family farm with her horses, cows and most importantly her dog.

Millie Donovan

Administration

Millie is OT Mackay’s welcoming voice and the first person you will see as you enter our office. Millie is always cheerful and happy to help wherever she can. Millie will assist you with your enquiries and do her best to answer any questions that you may have.

Millie has a strong client focus from her previous roles along with various management skills.

When not at work you can find Millie with her family and friends at her favourite spot – the beach, relaxing and enjoying the tranquillity.

Michelle Prince

Scheduler

Michelle is OT Mackay’s referral intake coordinator and scheduler.

Michelle will assist you by coordinating and managing new referrals, scheduling client bookings and stakeholder coordination. Michelle has a background in direct client services and service coordination within the disability services sector.

When not at work, Michelle enjoys spending time with her family, keeping healthy and active with Pilates and going to the beach with her dog.

Michelle looks forward to welcoming you into our practice.

Doug Hooper

Business Manager

Doug is our Practice Manager with a range of valuable experience in project and general management across a range of industries.
Doug has spent many years working within Government and Private Sector industries including; education, tourism and aviation.

Assisting Kerry with accounts as her business grew over the previous decade – he began to become more involved in the practice, leading him to join the team in February 2021.

Doug enjoys spending time with his kids, getting outdoors and active.