FRASER Coast Hospice is a six-bed purpose built inpatient facility that offers a flexible client and family centred model of care.
Hospices play a vital role in our communities by providing compassionate end-of-life care and support to individuals and their families during one of life's most challenging phases.
A specialised facility like the one here in Hervey Bay, provides a unique blend of medical expertise and emotional comfort, focusing on pain management, symptom relief, and emotional well-being for those with terminal illnesses.
Our Hospice enables patients to spend their final days in a peaceful, home-like environment, surrounded by loved ones, enhancing their quality of life and ensuring dignity in death.
Moreover, it alleviates the burden on families, offering respite and guidance throughout the process.
In doing so, our local Hospice contributes to a compassionate and supportive community where everyone, regardless of their health condition, is entitled to respectful and dignified care in their final moments.
Community support is essential for the sustainability of our local Hospice.
It ensures funding, volunteers, and awareness, enabling this vital facility to continue, providing compassionate end-of-life care to those in need.
Born from an initial Federal Government Grant and the gifting of land from the Fraser Coast Regional Council on a peppercorn lease, they are an essential part of our local medical services.
“In 2018, Jasine Leslie, a registered nurse in Hervey Bay, was the founder of our Hospice”.
“At that time, as a part of her working capacity, she transferred ‘Sally’ a palliative care patient to hospital via ambulance.”
“She sadly died just forty-eight hours later in a short stay bed. She did not even make it into a bed on a ward”.
“Jasine was devastated that there was nowhere that she could send Sally in her final hours.”
“It was actually flowers that ‘Sally’s’ husband sent, that initiated the journey to establish the region’s first not-for-profit Hospice.”
Jasine gathered together a group of like-minded locals with the same vision and focus who wanted to be able to provide a fee-free inpatient palliative care facility for people with a terminal illness on the Fraser Coast.
Through successful networking and engagement, the funds were raised and the complex was built. This year they celebrate two-years of operation.
“Prior to the launch of the Fraser Coast Hospice, a lot of people were passing away at home.”
“The statistics show that 70% of Australians want to die at home, but that is frequently a difficult process for the patient and their immediate family.”
“We have formed so many great partnerships with medical services in the community, including palliative care services at the hospital.”
“We are shifting the pendulum in terms of options for those facing end of life.”
“We have that compromise between medical and clinical care, with surroundings that look and feel like home.”
“Our patients make the rooms their own for the duration of their stay and that brings an immense level of comfort to them and their families”.
The Hospice can provide free care to anyone in the community over 18 years of age who has terminal illness.
They are governed by a robust board of medical experts, and day-to-day operations are led by the Director of Care supported by an administration, clinical and volunteer team.
“In establishing our Hospice, we forged partnerships with Toowoomba and Ipswich Hospice, which are embraced by their communities.”
“Our charter and mission have been guided by these partnerships”.
