National Excellence Awards and Culinary Competition winners 2025

Hospitality in Healthcare is proud to present to you the winners of our fourth annual National Culinary Competition and our annual National Awards of Excellence for 2025.

We’d also like to take the opportunity to emphasise that in our eyes, all our Culinary Competition finalists and all our Award nominees are winners in a broader sense – because all have proven themselves as dedicated to going the extra mile in terms of work ethic and commitment to quality. They all truly are the unsung heroes of our industry and we extend our heartfelt congratulations and thanks for their efforts.

Culinary Competition winner and runner-up

Crispy Duck Breast with Citrus Pumpkin, Cacao Granola, Beetroot and Spiced Gastrique

The Culinary Competition was won by Steph Park and Rajesh Pundir from STARS Hospital Brisbane, who presented Crispy Duck Breast with Citrus Pumpkin, Cacao Granola, Beetroot and Spiced Gastrique – aptly presented in a syringe to exemplify healthcare! 

Pan Seared Salmon, Crushed Spice Potatoes, Smoked Eggplant Fritter, Semolina Shad, Caperberry Salsa and Goan Fish Curry Sauce.

Runner-up finalist team was Shane Pereira and Ellapan Somasundaram of Monash Health with their dish of Pan Seared Salmon, Crushed Spice Potatoes, Smoked Eggplant Fritter, Semolina Shad, Caperberry Salsa and Goan Fish Curry Sauce.

For this year’s Competition, we were thrilled to have as judges Accredited Practising Dietitian Emma Cameron from Grampians Health, Chef and Leadership Trainer Glenn Flood and Bega Foodservice National Accounts Manager Adam Nicholls. Thanks so much for volunteering your time and sharing your expertise!

Our 2025 National Awards of Excellence winners were:

• Leadership Award: Raghav (Rob) Sridhara of WA Country Health Service

• Brilliance in Service Award: Ron Villanueva of RSL Care SA Morlancourt

• Sustainability Award:  The Enviro Services Waste Management Team from Joondalup Health Campus, Ramsay Health Care WA, accepted on their behalf by Ramsay Healthcare Catering Manager Jeremy Coffey

• Values in Action and Rosemary Ann Pirie OAM Award: Chef Antonio Ferraioli of Catholic Homes Castledare Village WA

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IHHC announces 2024 State Excellence Award winners for WA and SA

Each year the IHHC recognises the good work done by individuals and teams across our industry and publicly acknowledges them through our Awards for Excellence.

We are pleased to be able to present you our 2024 Winners for WA and SA.

State award winners go on to compete against each other for the National Award titles. These winners, along with the recipient of this year’s Rosemary Anne Pirie OAM Award – the highest honour the IHHC can bestow – will be announced during a lavish Dinner Presentation on the final night of this year’s IHHC National Conference, which is being held at Crown Perth from 4 to 6 November.

The Conference features three days of event-packed activities including keynote speakers, expert presenters, workshops, site visits, social events and networking opportunities and a trade expo – along with the annual IHHC Culinary Competition, designed to showcase the culinary skills of chefs working in health and aged care, which will be held on the evening of Monday November 4.

If you haven’t had made plans to attend, there’s still time to book – but be quick! Full conference registrations are $1065 to non-members, with day registration also available for $400.

 As always, we extend our congratulations to our winners, and our thanks to all those who took the time and trouble to send in nominations.

Western Australia

LEADERSHIP AWARD: Damiano Montagnese, Hotel Services Manager, Catholic Homes

BRIGHTEST STAR AWARD: Ashwani Kumar, Chef, Sister Mary Glowrey facility, Catholic Homes

PROJECT OF THE YEAR AWARD: The Dining Experience 2024, Catholic Homes (Damiano Montagnese, Hotel Services Manager)

VALUES IN ACTION CUSTOMER SERVICE AWARD: Nardeen Leppinus, Quality Assurance Officer, Fiona Stanley Fremantle Hospitals Group

ADVOCACY AWARD: Monika for its Prime implementation project at Fiona Stanley Fremantle Hospitals Group

SUSTAINABILITY AWARD: Fiona Stanley Fremantle Hospitals Group Food Rescue initiative

South Australia

LEADERSHIP AWARD: Amelia Lemmy, Café Manager, Westminster Café, Uniting SA

BRIGHTEST STAR AWARD: Remar Cipriano, Head Chef, RSL Care SA

PROJECT OF THE YEAR AWARD: Serene Residential Care Services (Ann Elphink, Kitchen Manager)

VALUES IN ACTION CUSTOMER SERVICE AWARD: Linda James, Catering Services Manager, Alwyndor Aged Care 

ADVOCACY AWARD: Nutrition Professionals Australia 

One of the reasons I am so passionate about the IHHC Excellence Awards is that they were set up to publicly acknowledge our people for going that extra mile in their everyday work. We want to showcase that our industry is full of dedicated workers who want to make a difference to patients’ and residents’ lives. They deserve the biggest thank you anyone can ever give. 

The VIC/TAS and NSW/QLD winners will be announced next month and then it’s on to the National Award winners - I cannot wait to announce them at the IHHC Conference Dinner on Wednesday 6 November. I hope to catch up with many of you there.

TROY LITZOW
IHHC Vice President