Dr Pam MacNeill’s Profile
Managing Director and founder of Disability Responsiveness New Zealand, Dr Pam MacNeill, hails from Christchurch, where she began her State Sector career in Care and Protection Social Work and Community Work.
Pam giving a presentation to members of the Hutt Chamber 2017
Dr Pam was the National Manager of the Mainstream Employment Programme at the State Services Commission in Wellington for sixteen years. She spent some time at both the office of the Health and Disability Commissioner, as Disability Programme Developer and at the Capital and Coast District Health Board, where she developed the role of Disability Responsiveness Educator.
In 2010, Dr Pam established ‘Pam MacNeill Consulting’, and managed several contracts for both State and community sector organisations:
- developing and facilitating disability-responsiveness training workshops
- managing a number of employment related projects and
- producing reports ultimately destined for the United Nations, for the Convention Coalition Monitoring Group.After successfully completing a two-year contract as Quality Improvement Lead within Disability Support Services at the Ministry of Health, Pam relaunched her consultancy as: Disability Responsiveness New Zealand in May of 2016 and registered DRNZ Ltd as a company in 2017.
Dr Pam with Upper Hutt City Councillor Ros Connelly at the Launch of the Enhancing Accessibility resource, at Expressions Arts and Entertainment Centre. The handbook and training guide, along with a series of workshops, were developed by DRNZ for the Upper Hutt City Council in June 2017.
Dr Pam MacNeill – PHD
Dr Pam MacNeill was awarded a PHD from Massey University in December 2024.
Dr Pam MacNeill in cap and gown
Dr MacNeill’s research examined the barriers and enablers to work, which exist generally and within the disability sector, for disabled New Zealanders.
The research aimed to examine the navigation of family, identity and education by disabled people, identify barriers to paid employment in all settings, investigate potential employment enablers and develop recommendations.
It highlighted the importance of self-determination as a means to minimise barriers, that the creation of opportunities for disabled people and employers to meet could lead to job offers and that the disability sector would greatly benefit by including disabled people in paid leadership roles.
Dr Pam MacNeill getting capped – December 2024
Watch Dr Pam MacNeill – Graduation video – December 2024
Dr Pam and Don MacNeill