Veteran's advice: 'Get on the front foot of change'

Challenge equals opportunity.

That was the message from keynote speaker Major Matina Jewell (retired) at the recent APHA 41^st National Congress (APHA Congress).

Ms Jewell shared her experiences in the Middle East as part of a United Nations (UN) peacekeeping force, and the toll it took on her both physically, and mentally.

It was a keynote speech that had the room at the APHA Congress absolutely spellbound.

"When I think of leaders, I think of everyone in an organisation," she told the event delegates.

"Leaders are at every single layer – we are all leaders."

Ms Jewell recalled her time in the Middle East after September 11. At the time, she was the Officer in Command of the Ships Army Department on HMAS Kanimbla.

"I was tasked with dealing with Kuwaiti soldiers, who could not comprehend that a woman could even serve in the military, let alone be in charge," she said.

"Half of them wouldn't speak to me, and the other half wanted to marry me!

"For the first time, I was in a place where my culture and my gender placed limits on my ability to lead.

"I had to remove myself and empower my male soldiers to take those orders to the Kuwaitis for me – it was up to me to be flexible."

Before being deployed again, Ms Jewell learned Arabic, a skill she said saved her life.

"I was with a UN force made up of 23 different nations serving in Syria and Lebanon," she said.

"I was the only Australian and the only woman at my patrol bases. Learning Arabic had made me more effective as a peacekeeper and it helped get that vital humanitarian aid to where it was needed.

"Serving on a base bordered by Syria, Lebanon, and Israel, is a volatile part of the world.

"We were surrounded by three Hezbollah bases, one of which was only 75 metres away."

Ms Jewell described the day the UN base she had been serving at came under heavy fire. It was an action that claimed the lives of her fellow peacekeepers. Ms Jewell had been sent on a dangerous mission in charge of a convoy that had to reach the coast of Lebanon just days prior to the fatal attack.

"A high-risk environment creates a strong bond," she said. "And as a leader, you have to think outside the box."

Matina Jewell shared her army experiences with delegates at the APHA 41st National Congress

Coming under fire again while part of the convoy, Ms Jewell was severely injured – it was an injury that ended her military career and resulted in a legal battle with the Australian government for war service recognition and health cover from the Department of Veterans Affairs.

Now a best-selling author, Ms Jewell told the Congress not to underestimate the changes they could make in people's lives, particularly in the health care sector

"I wouldn't change my journey, because it's all about perspective," she said.

"Life isn't fair, and we all face curveballs. But we can choose to find the best in us and those around us; choose the lens we want to see the world through."

During her 15-year military career, Ms Jewell served on five missions and earned nine military service and war medals.

She is the only Australian to receive two Republic of Lebanon war medals for acts of bravery on the battlefield and being wounded in combat.

She was also the first woman in the Australian Army to complete the physically demanding Navy divers' course and served with the American Navy Seals."

"I was called on to step up and lead and that can take a huge amount of courage," Ms Jewell said.

"I've had to overcome my own fears – fear is natural, but you have to accept it is the best learning opportunity.

"Challenge equals opportunity and if you can get on the front foot of change, and manage your own emotional response, you can do anything."

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