PALLIATIVE Care patients at The Wesley Hospital are the beneficiaries of a generous $10,000 donation from the Stanthorpe Rotary Club, raised at last year’s Opera in the Vineyard event.

 
The Stanthorpe Rotary Club has been supporting the Wesley for 22 years, raising a total of $330,000 for patients at the not-for-profit hospital, which is owned by the Uniting Church and operated by UnitingCare Health.

The Rotary Club’s Casey and Perdita O'Connor handed over the large check to UnitingCare Health’s Director of Fundraising and Marketing Nesli Eris and acting Executive Director Terence Seymour.

 Ms Eris said: “We would like to thank all the members of the Rotary Club for thinking of the patients at the Wesley’s Palliative Care Unit, and their hard work in raising such a significant amount.

 “This generous donation will be used to help support patients at The Wesley Hospital’s Palliative Care Service and pay for out-of-pocket expenses as health insurers do not cover the full cost of this care for patients.

 “This money will therefore make a huge difference to these patients and their families.”

 The Wesley’s Palliative Care Service, which has been operating for 12 years, has 17 beds and provides specialised care for patients with a life-threatening illness. The service treated 843 patients last year, up from about 550 patients five years ago.

 Dr Ralph McConaghy, Director of the Wesley Hospital’s Palliative Care Service, thanked the organisers of the event for their generosity and explained the importance of palliative care.

 “We are very grateful that the Stanthorpe Rotary Club raised such a wonderful amount that can be used to benefit patients,” Dr McConaghy said.

 “Palliative care is specialised care for patients with a life-threatening illness but, contrary to popular belief, it does not require the patient to be at the very end of life. Recent research is demonstrating early palliative care involvement lengthens life by three months on average.

 “High quality end-of-life care remains a core component of palliative care practice, but what has changed is we are starting to accompany people earlier on the journey. The goal is to prevent and relieve suffering for patients and families, regardless of the stage of disease.

  “Understanding how the illness affects the whole person, mentally, emotionally and physically, is a critical aspect of this area of medicine.”

This year's Opera in the Vineyard will be held at the Ballandean Estate Wineries in the Granite Belt on Sunday May 1. Tickets are available for lunch and opera, or dinner and opera at Ballandean Estate Wineries at www.ballandeanestate.com

To learn more about The Wesley Hospital’s Palliative Care Service visit wesley.com.au/services/clinical-services/palliative-care

For more information on supporting Palliative Care, or any of the services at The Wesley Hospital, please email fundraising@uchealth.com.au or call 07 3253 4650. You can also visit our website: wesley.com.au/donate

 Photo caption:

UnitingCare Health’s Director of Fundraising and Marketing Nesli Eris and acting Executive Director Terence Seymour collect the cheque from the Stanthorpe Rotary Club pair Casey and Perdita O'Connor.