Eileen Gordon – Address at the 2013 Opening of Palliative Care Unit Extension at Mona Vale Hospital:
After decades of work from members of the community and local state MP's the day has finally arrived.
Background: On 29th.October, 1989 the Palliative Care Service at Mona Vale Hospital was opened by the Honourable Bronwyn Bishop, Member of Parliament for Mackellar.
The Palliative Care unit was run by the widely-revered Dr John Doran, and offered 24-hour home support. He was soon joined by Jo-Ann Steeves as Volunteer Co-ordinator. This was a start, but a Hospice was needed too. A group of volunteers, led Volunteer Co-ordinator, Jo-Ann Steeves, started fund-raising with a concert in 1992, which raised a remarkable $10,000. Later, the Combined Auxiliaries, headed by Cora Adcock, donated $2,000 and commenced fund-raising in this community with fetes, raffles, concerts, etc.
In October, 1992, The Area Health Board requested funding for a Hospice at Mona Vale Hospital from health authorities. On 25th February, 1995, Community Services Minister, Mr Jim Longley, announced that a new 12-bed Hospice was to be built at Mona Vale at a cost of $2million, to be completed in August, 1997.
At this time, the Auxiliaries had raised $115,000. THEN came a change of State Government and Labor refused the Hospice at Mona Vale. The community fund stood at $187,368. All active fund-raising ceased and the Funds remained in a Trust Fund with the Health Department, attracting Interest and also an annual Management Fee.
Over the ensuing years, the delivery of palliative care services has changed, with the focus now being to keep people in their own familiar surroundings by providing the services they need instead of treating them in acute hospitals – better for the patient, better for the budget. The CORE of this is an adequate Palliative Care Day Hospital.
So, on 17th.May, 2007, the Mona Vale Hospital Auxiliary wrote to the General Manager of Mona Vale Hospital requesting that community funds held in Trust Fund 306704 be used to extend “The Cottage” where staff were doing their best to provide services in a facility that was inadequate.
And so began the Paper Trail from Auxiliary to Health Dept, Attorney General, Crown Solicitor and finally the Commissioner for Dormant Funds who ruled on 1st. September 2010 that the funds be released for the purpose of extending the Palliative Care building. A Trust was established with four Trustees and on 17th January, 2011 these community funds were finally released to the Palliative Care Trust Fund - $244,767. A process of a frustrating 3 years and 8 months.
In 2011 the Palliative Care Trust Fund had detailed plans for extensions to the Palliative Care Unit which might serve this community well then and in the foreseeable future. These detailed plans had been supplied pro-bono by a well-respected local architect, Emile Jansen, and approved by the Hospital Engineering Department.
With the extraordinary delays in releasing these community funds, building costs had escalated and we found that we could only fund the new administration section with adequate offices for doctors and nurses and the new physiotherapy unit, leaving the refit of treatment rooms, kitchen, bathroom, common room and reception plus the new physiotherapy deck and ramp exercise areas unfunded.
We really did not want a HALF-BAKED facility and so the Mona Vale Hospital Auxiliary asked the Health Department, NOT for the 1995 $2million, but to match the funding of this community with $244,767. After all, this was a Health Department Facility on Health Department Land. With the support of Rob Stokes, Member for Pittwater, the State Government agreed to honour the promise of Mr Jim Longley in 1995 to match Auxiliary funds and $240,000 was added to the fund, Mona Vale Hospital Kiosk donated $40,000, Rotary Clubs of Pittwater, Terrey Hills and Dee Why/Warringah added their support with combined donations of over $70,000, and Professor Vicki Taylor, CE of NSL agreed to waive the $60,000 fee that would normally be payable to Capital Works for overall supervision of the building project.
While all this was going on, Friends of Northern Beaches Palliative Care, led by President, Jo-Ann Steeves, were busy organising the refurbishment of the original Cottage – new carpet, painting etc with the help of a State Government grant.
The new building was going ahead, but disappointingly, we had exhausted all funds and had no means of building the $60,000 verandah which was a major feature and joined the two buildings. Then a miracle happened in the form of the Shirley Great Foundation, the Auxiliary found another $15,000 and the General Manager obtained $10,000. So we were able to build the beautiful verandah.
So, with all this help, this community has been able to provide a $660,000 purpose-built facility for the provision of Palliative Care Services.
Our thanks go to all the people who have supported this project and to the Trustees.
Eileen Gordon, 2nd, October, 2013
