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Chair, Geoff Russell said the move from Ballarat south has been a community driven project a decade in the making. The new building will accommodate the next 25 years of growth.<\/p>\n
\u201cTen years ago, we realised we could no longer fit into Drummond Street. We\u2019ve had to be patient, knock on doors… You name it, we\u2019ve done it,\u201d he said. \u201cI can see 250 people being cared for at any one time in the not too distant future, perhaps onto 300.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe word is out, if you\u2019re faced with life threatening illness, Ballarat Hospice Care is the place for you. It\u2019s owned by the community, for the community and it\u2019s of the community.\u201d<\/p>\n
Member for Western Victoria, Jaala Pulford experienced the support of Ballarat Hospice Care a few years ago before her teenage daughter, Sinead, died of cancer.<\/p>\n
She said the new site has been a long-term \u201clabour of love,\u201d with the organisation formerly at a \u201cpretty ordinary\u201d facility.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis is an absolute treasure of a service. The staff and volunteers that provide care to people who are dying, and indeed care and support the carers of people in our community who are dying, whether they are older people or small children, is just extraordinary,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
Palliative care was unfamiliar to Ms Pulford before her daughter\u2019s illness, but her experience with Ballarat Hospice Care was the \u201ccomplete opposite\u201d of what she thought.<\/p>\n
\u201cFrom the very first nurse who knocked on the door and took control of a completely out of control situation, at least that\u2019s how it felt as a mum, it was an enormous relief,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
\u201cSinead was a forthright young woman and was adamant she\u2019d have her care at home, in her room with her things, cat on the bed, and she was able to do that.\u201d<\/p>\n
By the time Sinead\u2019s last days arrived, her family had become capable carers because of the quality resources and professionals locally accessible.<\/p>\n
\u201cPlainly, because the hospice staff had showed us what to do, told us what to do and prepared us,\u201d Ms Pulford said. \u201cIt was a great comfort to her, it was a great comfort to me, to my husband and to our son.<\/p>\n
\u201cThey are truly outstanding palliative care professionals and it\u2019s really wonderful to see them in a facility that will enable them to provide the kind of care and support that my family had, to so many more families across this region.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
WELL equipped to provide a better quality of life to those terminally ill, Ballarat Hospice Care has moved to a new home. Now in a built-for-purpose palliative care hub on Sturt Street, Alfredton, the warm, welcoming facility was officially opened last week. The large premises has private, comfortable consultation rooms specifically designed for difficult family […]<\/p>\n