Nola Marino (Forrest, Liberal Party, Shadow Assistant Minister for Education) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Busselton Hospice Care in my electorate is a wonderful group of local volunteers who provide professional palliative services that offer emotional and practical support, as well as social connection, to those living with life-limiting diagnoses and illness; those receiving palliative care and their caregivers; and the bereaved. I cannot thank these amazing volunteers enough for their time and for the caring and compassion that they have provided for over 30 years. They have a history of delivering professionally trained, high-quality services to our Busselton community, and I want to thank the current and previous volunteer board members as well. They've told me that, post COVID, there's now greater recognition that the majority of people wish to remain at home during palliative care, which reinforces the need for the excellent outreach provided by Busselton Hospice Care.

Historically, the group relied on funding from the local community and their own fundraising efforts to support the employment of palliative care nursing staff for the Busselton hospital. Currently they manage the volunteer program for the hospital's four-bed hospice unit. They continue to advocate a blended funding model—a combination of government, philanthropic and community funding, working together—to ensure high-quality compassionate care and connection to our community. As co-convenor of the Parliamentary Friends of Palliative Care I thank them for their 30 years of volunteer caring and providing palliative care. (Time expired)