Leaders recognised for aged care contributions on Australia Day Honours List

Three aged care leaders have been recognised among 949 Australians on the Australia Day 2026 Honours List.

• Nicolas Mersiades was appointed as a Member of the Order of Australia (AM) for “significant service to aged welfare”.

Nicolas was the Director of Aged Care at Catholic Health Australia (CHA) between 2009 and 2022. He appeared as a witness during the Royal Commission into Aged Care Quality and Safety and was responsible for a number of CHA’s Royal Commission submissions.

Nicolas was also Deputy Chair of the Aged Care Financing Authority from 2012 to 2021. Prior to working in aged care, he was a Senior Executive with the Public Service for more than 25 years.

• Andrea Coote was appointed as a Member of the Order of Australia (AM) for “significant service to the people and Parliament of Victoria, and to the aged care sector”.

In 2021, Andrea was appointed inaugural Chair of the Aged Care Quality and Safety Advisory Council, which advises the Aged Care Quality and Safety Commissioner on how the Commissioner is performing and emerging risks.

She was also a member of the Aged Care Sector Committee, an advisory body set up by the Government to help shape aged care policy and reforms, between 2021 and 2023.

Andrea was a Victorian Member of Parliament for 16 years, from 1999 until she resigned in 2015. She served as Shadow Minister for Ageing and Carers between 2002 and 2006.

• Edgar (Ted) Jackson was awarded the Medal of the Order of Australia (OAM) for “service to aged welfare, and to the community of Cessnock”, a city in NSW's Hunter Valley, 154km north of Sydney.

Ted founded Northern Coalfields Community Care Association in 1988. He was CEO of the Not For Profit residential aged care and home care provider from 1990 to 2022, a period spanning more than 30 years.

Ted was also CEO of Cessnock Hospital for six years and helped establish Cessnock District Health Benefits Fund.