Fight on for health service

SUPPORTERS of the Peel Mobile Health Service will fight on for funding with its not-for-profit administrator GP Down South footing the bill for three more months.

Earlier this year, GP Down South was advised the Peel Mobile Health Service’s $130,000 budget would not be funded by the South Metropolitan Area Health Service beyond June 30.

GP Down South business development manager Eleanor Britton said several essential services tied to the Mobile Health Service would be lost along with it, including nurse clinics, mental health counsellors, Aboriginal outreach and diabetes and dietician services.

“It’s in danger of having quite a large impact,” she said.

Ms Britton said GP Down South would continue to fund Mobile Health until September and work to find permanent funding.

“We don’t just want it to fall over on June 30,” she said.

Ms Britton said the organisation was investigating private funding options but hoped to reverse the State Government’s decision.

“We’ll look at every option we can,” she said.

“We’re really hopeful and we’ll be really disappointed if the Government doesn’t reverse their decision.”

Murray-Wellington MLA Robyn Clark said with the vital services provided by Mobile Health to the region, particularly in mental health, it was ludicrous to cut it.

“Between David Templeman and myself, we are putting the pressure on to ensure it does continue,” she said.

“Given what the region went through in January and February 2016, the region still needs a lot of healing,” she said.

However, Mrs Clarke said with cuts still needed in the Budget, it would be hard to reverse the decision.

“Until the budget is released in September it is hard to say continue when we don’t know where the money is coming from,” she said.

Peel Mobile Health Service held a meeting in Waroona on Wednesday at the Waroona Community Resource Centre to gather support.