Samuel Hockey
Youth mental health ambassador with lived experience
Samuel is a mental health ambassador with lived experience of mental illness and suicidal thoughts. He currently resides in Sydney, but grew up on the South Coast where he struggled to find the mental health support that he needed in his earlier years.
He was a National Mental Health Commissioner and has been a youth lived experience representative on projects such as the Primary Health Network (PHN) Advisory Panel, Consumer and Carer Engagement Project Steering Group, Head to Health, Black Dog CRESP LEC, and Suicide Prevention & Public Policy Modelling Project. He is also a member of North Western Melbourne’s PHN Expert Advisory Board and Suicide Prevention Australia.
His hope for the Fellowship is to further his understanding of government and policy processes and learn from the other members of his cohort. Samuel is looking forward to this opportunity to grow further in his understanding of the sector, and as an emerging leader and as a person who is affected by mental health service design and delivery.