Community
23 October, 2024
TDHS cashes in on worker funding
TIMBOON and District Healthcare Service (TDHS) has cashed in on State Government funding designed to create new opportunities for workers looking to find their greener pastures in regional Victoria.
TDHS was named a recipient under the first round of the Victorian Government’s $150 million Regional Worker Accommodation Fund, which is designed to support efforts to provide affordable living arrangements for key workers in regional communities.
While TDHS cannot reveal the amount of funding received yet, as it is still listed as Commercial in Confidence by the Victorian Government, the grants had a minimum and maximum range of $150,000 through to $5 million.
The TDHS board has approved a co-contribution in conjunction with the funding, which will be used to facilitate the development of three new relocatable cabins on property owned by TDHS.
TDHS acting board chair Claire Murphy said news of the funding was an exciting opportunity for the health service to future proof the delivery of its services.
“I’m elated,” she said.
“It is so exciting for both the health service and the community more broadly, as something which will pay off not only for the Timboon and district community for the next five years, but have an ongoing impact.
“It’s positive news when, at the moment, there is so much strain for health services.
“The operational team, Gary (Castledine, CEO) and Andrew (Maskell, finance manager) and their teams have done amazing work in pulling together the first stage of the proposal, and getting experts on board to look at precisely what we’ll be doing.”
Ms Murphy said all regional health services were facing issues attracting skilled workers, and often times housing could be a final hurdle to clear even when there was interest from potential recruits.
“Getting workers to the area can be a challenge experienced across all industries, but having accommodation means we can assist people in relocating, and give them time to settle in while helping them to find more permanent arrangements,” she said.
“It helps in not only attracting workers, but workers who are going to bring their families and stay in the area.”
Ms Murphy said having increased accommodation would open new opportunities for the health service to be strategic in its hiring, from attracting locum doctors through to filling positions in allied health or supporting health care students.
“Our strategic vision is that we’re a health service – not just a hospital – so it’s about having a community that is healthy and well, with services, information and support in place to keep people as well as possible and where they want to be,” she said.
“To be able to provide the service is a huge benefit – especially if those workers see what a fabulous community this is to live in and a fabulous place this is to work, and be keen to stay or return.
“We’re now moving at pace, and the exact timeframe has to be approved, but the sites are ready to go and we’re looking forward to what comes next because there’s a lot of busy work happening.”
Ms Murphy said she doesn’t anticipate any issues filling the units for the ancillary purpose of boosting health care workers for TDHS, but also believed the accommodation could support other government agencies if openings emerged – as collaboration with other agencies which benefit the community is already an important point of emphasis for TDHS.
“We already work in partnership with health services across the Barwon South West, and those partnerships are what help us provide our communities with the opportunity to access what they need, when they need it,” she said.
“We can share resources with other government agencies if it were in excess to our needs – obviously our health service is going to be primary – but if we had a unit not booked for a period of time and the school needed to house staff, or our health service partners need help, we could provide accommodation.”
Ms Murphy said the accommodation could also be repurposed after a five-year period, which could open a range of future options dependent on the needs of TDHS.
“This is very much blue-sky-brainstorming, but it could include the units being repurposed for health care services,” she said.
“We don’t know what that looks like, and there are obviously regulations, but it could be something like providing respite beds, or for people who need to be a little closer to town to access health services.
“We’ve got an aging population, so it’s exciting to think we could offer services closer to home or expand some services for people who might need a bit of extra support.
“Worker accommodation is our top priority, but we can reassess and look at what our health service needs in five to ten years’ time.”
Read More: Timboon