Lucindale Survivors survive and conquer Shitbox Rally
Erin McWaters. In November 2022, Shannon and Erin were handed the keys to the Autumn 2021 Shitbox Rally AU Falcon of local Lucindale Survivors Rohan Giles and Andrew Wilks, and began their fundraising campaign to get the face-lifted Sherlee the Shitbox off the Port Douglas start-line on October 13th 2023 for the Spring 2023 Rally, bound for Adelaide via Birdsville.
Health tax “fatal” for some GP”ˆclinics
The State Government’s new health tax is another hit for rural and regional communities, with many GP clinics facing the risk of closure. Labor recently reclassified tenanted medical professionals as employees, not contractors, for payroll tax. This move has left clinics grappling with debts often in the hundreds of thousands of dollars, as the tax has been backdated up to five years in many instances.
A celebration of mobile eye care
Established in 2013, the Flying Doctor Mobile Eye Care service delivers comprehensive, accessible eye examinations to rural Victorian communities ... Despite the fact that more than 90% of vision impairment is preventable or treatable, missing regular eye health checks or treatment is too often a reality of rural living, and risks more serious future health concerns.
“The doctor won’t see you now…“
Murrumbidgee Local Health District (MLHD) is once again under the spotlight as the Barham Hospital had been left with no doctors after the contractual arrangement with Ochre Health ran out on November 30 ... Having the multimillion-dollar facility sitting idle due to a bureaucratic standoff has greatly frustrated local doctors and distressed patients seeking treatment.
Beccy wins Natural Olympia, crowned World Champion
It’s been a decade long journey lifting thousands of kilos in the gym and last month Maclean bodybuilder Beccy Pateman achieved her dream when she was crowned overall winner of the Professional Figure category in the Natural Olympia contest, plus overall winner of the Professional Fit Body category at the WNBF World Championships.
Push to reclassify Wallaroo Hospital
Wallaro Hospital should be reclassified to reflect its status as the major hospital in the Yorke and Northern Local Health Network area. That is one of the specific requests in the petition led by Member for Narungga Fraser Ellis calling for better health services in the electorate, which was signed by 10,688 people and presented to the South Australian Parliament in November.
60 new nurses to work in Northern Rivers
Sixty nurses from the UK and Ireland have been recruited to work in the Northern Rivers ... Indian national Kavitha Mathew will work at Kyogle Multi-Purpose Service ... “I’m very happy to work in Kyogle,” Kavitha said.
Director spreads the word from the hill tops
Hilltop provides motel style accommodation, at a heavily subsidised cost, to regional cancer patients undergoing treatment at the adjacent Cancer Centre and also their carers if required .. The Cancer Centre was expected to be treating 250 patients a week but this figure has already risen to 350 people.
Double celebrations: the Flying Doctor announces new Ambassador at its Charleville 80-year anniversary event
The Lighting the Way Ambassadors, selected for their genuine affinity with the Flying Doctor, work within their region to advocate for improved health and wellbeing outcomes for rural and remote Queenslanders ... Established in 1943, the Charleville Base services a waiting room of more than 622,000 square kilometres, connecting the residents of the South-West Queensland region to leading, and often lifesaving, health services.
Aged care in doubt
The future of residential aged care in Ardrossan is in doubt as the local hospital tackles challenges which forced it to close its accident and emergency, and acute care ... "We also reluctantly realised our ability to provide sustainable aged care was doubtful and it was unlikely any other private provider would be interested in taking over these services": Ardrossan Community Hospital chairperson Margaret Tomsen.
PATS expands to prosthetic and orthotic appointments: Picton
South Australians living in rural and regional areas will now be eligible for financial support to travel to specialist Prosthetic and Orthotic clinics for health appointments, under an expansion of the Patient Assistance Transport Scheme ... To qualify for this service, people must attend either a public or private hospital or outpatient clinic...
Making bore water fit for dialysis
Making scarce and impure bore water in The Centre’s outback fit for use in medical dialysis has earned Alice local Michael C Smith a Distinguished Alumni Award from Flinders University in Adelaide. “I’m proud that one of my designs is working today in Kiwirrkurra, Australia’s most remote Aboriginal community,” says Dr Smith.
ABS conducts Aboriginal health survey in the Barkly
A team from the Australian Bureau of Statistics has visited Tennant Creek and Barkly remote communities as part of the nationwide survey of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people ... Residents are asked if they would like to take part in the survey...
New telehealth trolleys bring great benefits to WWHS’ aged care residents
New telehealth trolleys, offering greater access to health professionals without the need for travel, have been rolled out across all West Wimmera Health Service’s ten residential aged care facilities ... these trolleys are now being wheeled around our aged care facilities...
Fixing GP crisis
Why is our general practitioner system broken, and how do we fix it? Rural communities in the South East continue to face GP shortages, and the closure of many small-town medical clinics because of our failure to attract and retain specialist doctors is putting rural patients at risk.
Behind the eyes of a carer
Resthaven Manager Service Development, Tam Henwood, is passionate about the Staying at Home in Regional South Australia Program. As the primary carer of her mother, Tam’s involvement with the initiative is not exclusive to the office, having participated in a retreat earlier this year with her mother who lives with dementia.
Parkinson’s disease research collaboration to improve lives in regional, rural, and remote Australia: Charles Sturt University
A collaborative research project led by Charles Sturt University in Port Macquarie has the potential to improve the health and care services for people living with Parkinson’s disease in rural, regional, and remote Australia ... Parkinson’s disease is the second most prevalent neurodegenerative disorder globally, after Alzheimer’s disease...
Queenslanders left confused by health department statistics
The Queensland Government has recently released positive statistical information on Health Department outcomes on the Darling Downs, while this week the Opposition’s M.P. and Shadow Minister for Health and Ambulance Services, Ros Bates has released statistical data showing negative Health Services outcomes for the twelve months to the end of June across the state.
A&E shutdown
Michelle Daw. Ardrossan Community Hospital has temporarily shut its accident and emergency service and acute care in response to ongoing financial losses and workforce challenges ... Increased costs include governance and compliance, employment of agency staff to fill staff shortages, and on-call retainer payments for doctors. The hospital’s income has been impacted by a decrease in the number of people with private health insurance and workforce shortages.
Cost blowout
When will the Bordertown community get a new medical hub? That’s the million-dollar question ratepayers are asking the Tatiara District Council that’s battling a “developer crisis”. Plans for a multi-million-dollar medical clinic on the land next to the Bordertown Hospital … have been scrapped as the developer faces a cost blowout of over $2million.
BRADAAG workshop to promote enhanced AOD service
The Barkly Regional Alcohol and Drug Abuse Advisory Group (BRADAAG) is inviting the community to an information workshop about the development of an enhanced local service working to reduce the impacts of the harmful use of alcohol and other drugs (AOD) ... Professor Dennis Gray ... will present on BRADAAG’s response to his report into the organisation...
Feeding friendly group in Kadina
Jess Liddy. A feeding-friendly group has started in Kadina. Australian Breastfeeding Association counsellor Sally Michael and her daughter, trainee counsellor Mary Carroll, wanted to bridge a gap locally ... “We will talk through all different kinds of baby topics throughout a session — not just feeding.”
