CALLS have been made to expand Inala House’s patient accommodation services as the Cancer Council spends big to house the growing number of people travelling to Tamworth for treatment.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
Inala House is co-run by the Cancer Council and Hunter New England Health and provides free accommodation to people from remote communities receiving cancer treatment.
Accommodation and support services coordinator Shaen Fraser said the need for support was growing.
“We would like to expand the service, it is not big enough,” she said.
So far, this financial year, I’ve spent about $30,000 in additional accommodation.
- Shaen Fraser - Cancer Council
“We are providing outside accommodation at Cancer Council’s cost.
“So far, this financial year, I’ve spent about $30,000 in additional accommodation.”
READ MORE:
The call came as the NSW Cancer Council chief executive Jeff Mitchell made a rare visit to Tamworth to see the facility and fill-in staff and volunteers on the charity’s new five-year strategy.
Ms Fraser said the charity would have to renew its Inala House partnership with the local health district in three years time and there would have to be a lot of consultation before any expansion was on the table.
“We have whispered already, but again it’s not just our wish, Hunter New England own the facility, they have to provide another piece of land or build, so there’s still lots of work, but we are talking about the need,” she said.
Mr Mitchell said the need to expand Inala House hadn’t been raised with him directly, but he understood Cancer Council’s services would need to expand.
“The general need for accommodation, we know, is going to increase right across NSW and Australia,” he said.
“There are different ways to provide that.
“Facilities like this are fantastic, there are other ways to do it too, partnering with other people who have accommodation where we could just subsidise the room nights.
“We’ve been experimenting with those options as well.”
Mr Mitchell said the Cancer Council was currently piloting a new model which would plant a liaison officer in cancer treatment centres around the state.
With a raft of charities seeking funding and backing various cancer research efforts, it’s hoped the new role, to be piloted in Albury, would create better access to the suite of support offered by the organisation.
“[That’s] all the supports services, whether it is peer support or psycho-social support or practical, things like financial assistance or pro bono support,” he said.