The Voluntary Assisted Dying Act 2021

22 Nov 2021

The Voluntary Assisted Dying Act 2021 was passed on 16 September 2021 and allows for voluntary assisted dying to be available on 1 January 2023, providing dignity, choice and compassion for those at the end of their life.

HCQ made a number of submissions on the Bill and gave evidence at the public hearing in July following consultation with consumers and carers across the State to ensure a diverse range of views was captured and heard.

Our CEO, Melissa Fox has now been appointed to the Voluntary Assisted Dying Implementation Taskforce which will be supported by subcommittees responsible for the delivery of the extensive program of work to put in place the complex clinical and administrative arrangements. Melissa will lead the sub-committee focused on consumer/community engagement and continue to amplify the voices of consumers during the implementation phase. Two consumer and carer representatives are also being appointed to join each subcommittee.

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Advancing Kidney Care 2026 (AKC2026) recognises Martin Chambers’ contribution 

22 Nov 2021

Martin Chambers is a well-known member of HCQ’s network and currently sits on the Health Consumers Collaborative of Queensland. He has also been the Advancing Kidney Care 2026 (AKC2026) Collaborative’s consumer representative since its inception in late 2018.

In their September 2021 Communique, the AKC2026 Collaborative recognised and thanked him for his exceptional contribution to improving quality care for people with kidney disease. In their words, “For the past 15 years Martin has applied his many skills and lived experience to health advocacy, with a focus on patients with kidney disease, their carers’, and the building of strong and sustainable consumer partnerships with the public health system. Martin notes that ‘the best training you can get is when a loved one depends on you to keep them functional.’”

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To isolate or not to isolate? How a lockdown in Brisbane affected a couple from Cairns 

22 Nov 2021

Within days of the lockdown in South East Queensland in July 2021 following the first outbreak of the Delta variant, Cairns and Yarrabah also went into lockdown. Having just hosted a Consumer Conversation to hear from consumers across the State during the lockdown in the south-eastern corner, HCQ reached out to consumers and carers from our network in the Far North to find out whether their particular concerns and experiences were reflected in the recommended list of actions in our situation report..  

One carer representative from our network, Deb Robins, took the time to describe her experience of accompanying her husband to Brisbane for hospital treatment during this time. In particular, she highlighted the difficulties people are facing in getting reliable information on discharge when they need care far from home and the need for discharge staff to be fully informed so they can give the correct advice to patients and their families.

Read their story here:

My husband and I have been in North Brisbane for the past month and arrived home just as the lockdown in Cairns was lifted. I had escorted him to Brisbane with some trepidation, not being a medical escort, but he was discharged to travel independently and wanted my support.  He was being monitored and assessed initially for heart valve surgery.  The weeks in Brisbane were filled with innumerable daily tests – some quite invasive. He was also treated medically to improve his overall weak physical condition and boost his heart/lung function to a point where he could survive surgery – which he didn’t reach by the time he was discharged.

Therefore, I was locked down for a handful of days, twice, in my little motel room with kettle, toaster, microwave and walking distance from both his hospitals in Brisbane.  I’m certain the Olympics and of course the variety of programs on the ABC and SBS channels helped, but I exercised 1-2 hours daily, read, crafted, but mostly networked for my health roles.  In the private hospital there were many days when laundry drop off at the hospital entrance was the only visitation allowed.  Of course we could message on the phone after a day of tests, so we understood the greater good of these restrictions. The surgeon assessing him very kindly arranged an exemption for me to attend his rooms which were within the hospital, to help my husband discuss his options and prognosis – that’s when we opted  to be re-assessed for more options with the heart transplant team working out of the public system.

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Responding to Delta: Chance to change how care is delivered IF WE GET THIS RIGHT NOW

4 Nov 2021

Queensland’s COVID-19 pandemic response has exposed the existing disparities in access to healthcare.
Just as the state’s vaccination response has needed to focus on our more vulnerable citizens, so too has our health system long needed a reset based on equity and value.

The safety and wellbeing of health consumers relies on a Queensland Health system that operates wholistically, collaborating to provide seamless, evidence-based care for the benefit of Queenslanders, no matter where they live or who they are.

The need during a pandemic surge to provide care closer to home, coordinated with primary care, is an opportunity to finally embed the reform consumers and many in the system have wanted for so long.

Read the full Issues Paper >