Beyond the Consulting Room: NSW Centenary Awards Honour Leaders Protecting Animals and the People Who Love Them
Being a veterinarian is rarely just about what happens inside a sterile examination room. At its best, it is about community, empathy, and protecting the fragile bond between animals and their humans.
That dedication was front and centre at the Veterinary Practitioners Board of NSW’s Annual General Meeting in Parramatta on Monday, 9 November, where four outstanding practitioners were presented with the 2026 Centenary Awards. Marking a century since formal veterinary registration began under the Veterinary Surgeons Act 1923, the awards celebrate leaders across One Health, One Welfare, and professional practice.
“Being a veterinarian is not simply about what you know clinically. It is also about what you contribute,” said Board President Dr Magdoline Awad. “It is about sharing knowledge, mentoring others, improving animal health and welfare, and leaving the profession and the community a little stronger than you found it.”
While the 2026 roll of honour spans research into equine dentistry, aquatic biosecurity, and chronic joint pain, one recipient’s grassroots work offers a powerful reminder of how caring for animals can transform human lives.
Spotlight: Dr Mark Westman – One Welfare Award
Dr Mark Westman, co-founder of the national charity Pets in the Park, was awarded the Centenary One Welfare Award for his tireless leadership in protecting the human–animal bond, as well as his vital contributions to feline viral disease research and veterinary education.
From James Herriot Dreams to City Streets
Westman originally envisioned becoming a traditional rural vet, inspired by James Herriot and childhood holidays on his grandparents’ Wagga Wagga dairy farm. But while studying at the University of Sydney, a talk about volunteering with street dogs in Bali redirected his path. After graduating in 2003, he spent five formative years at the RSPCA in Sydney, committing his focus to shelter animals and community welfare.
The catalyst for Pets in the Park arrived when a high school friend running a Parramatta soup kitchen noted that clients arriving for food assistance were also desperate for help feeding and treating their companion animals. Westman began heading down to the park with basic vaccines, flea treatments, and advice. Alongside co-founders Dr Leah Skelsey, Linda Warlond, and Vicky Cawsey, that local initiative evolved into a nationwide charity providing free veterinary care to pets belonging to people experiencing or at risk of homelessness.
Changing Lives at Both Ends of the Leash
“Pets in the Park starts as free vet care, but it gives us unique access into people’s lives to help in other ways,” Westman explains.
He recalls an Iranian refugee client who attended clinics for 15 years with two small terrier crosses that were “his absolute life”. Over time, the volunteer network rallied far beyond veterinary care: a volunteer lawyer connected him with immigration support for his visa, and colleagues helped him secure accommodation in a granny flat at a local veterinary clinic, where he is now exploring casual work.
For Westman, dismantling public misconceptions around disadvantaged pet owners remains a crucial mission.
“People can be quick to judge and assume that people experiencing homelessness have pets for self-serving reasons or that the animals aren’t well cared for,” he notes. “After almost 15 years with Pets in the Park, I can tell you that our clients absolutely love and adore their animals. They often put their pets’ needs ahead of their own.”
“A dog living rough on the street with its owner can have all its needs met and experience excellent welfare, sometimes better than a dog living an unstimulated and unfulfilled life in a mansion’s backyard.”
Groundbreaking Research & Future Projects
Alongside his community fieldwork and his primary role as a veterinary microbiologist for the NSW State Veterinary Laboratory, Westman has authored over 20 peer-reviewed papers on feline immunodeficiency virus (FIV) and feline leukaemia virus (FeLV). As chair of the Australian Feline Retrovirus Advisory Panel, he championed mandatory confirmatory testing guidelines to prevent shelter cats from being unnecessarily euthanased due to false-positive initial tests. He is currently supporting clinical trials using human HIV antiviral medications to treat affected cats.
His next major undertaking is Community Vets—a student-led hospital model that pairs practical veterinary student training with free or subsidised care for disadvantaged pet owners.
“Do what you can with what you have so you can help make your own little sphere of the world a better place,” Westman says. “Small actions can grow into something much bigger.”
Meet the Other 2026 Centenary Award Recipients
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| Left to right: Dr Oliver Liyou (Professional Practice Award), Dr Mark Westman (One Welfare Award), and Dr James Fensham (Early Career Award) at the AGM in Parramatta. Recipient A/Prof Sanaa Zaki (One Health Award) was unable to attend. |
The Centenary Awards also celebrated three other leaders whose work protects animals across land, sea, and clinical practice:
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Dr Oliver Liyou – Professional Practice Award
Based in Northern NSW, Dr Liyou is a pioneer in equine dentistry education through Equine Veterinary & Dental Services (EVDS), training vets across Australia to treat dental disease and keep rural practices viable. During the catastrophic 2022 Northern NSW floods, Dr Liyou opened his South Grafton clinic to house displaced horses and coordinated regional emergency veterinary relief. He also works actively on mental health initiatives for practitioners. -
Dr James Fensham – Early Career Award (Inaugural Recipient)
Created to recognise exceptional leadership within the first ten years of graduation, this inaugural award honoured Dr Fensham for his work in aquatic animal health. Working across commercial aquaculture, Dr Fensham focuses on preventive biosecurity, food safety, and antimicrobial stewardship—ensuring antibiotics are used responsibly in aquatic farming while teaching the next generation of aquatic veterinarians. -
Associate Professor Sanaa Zaki – One Health Award
Leading the University of Sydney’s One Health Musculoskeletal Research Group, A/Prof Zaki bridges animal and human medicine to tackle osteoarthritis and chronic pain. By exploring how human therapies can treat joint disease in animals—and vice versa—her work holds enormous promise for older pets suffering from debilitating mobility issues. She is also a champion of veterinary mental health, developing curricula covering resilience, communication, and self-care for new graduates.
With over 5,100 veterinarians registered in NSW, the 2026 awards highlight that whether treating street dogs in a city park, rehabilitating flood-affected horses, or studying chronic joint pain, veterinary care extends far beyond the clinic walls.
For more information, visit 2026 Centenary Awards
