How you’ve helped
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When you bring life and joy to a child's heart, you relieve stress and anxiety.
“We all want shorter hospital stays, higher pain tolerance and less anxiety for our children” says Dr Jess Costa-Pinto, a paediatrician in the Children’s Ward at Box Hill Hospital.
Research shows these are the positive health benefits visual art can have for children.
For this reason, we approached artist Tess Dawson to create a series of Australia-themed murals for the Children’s Ward at Box Hill.
Filled with life, warmth and love, they help make hospital care less scary for children.
Dr Costa-Pinto says: “We’re shaping the way that children see the health care system – we’re building trust from an early age so that they’re comfortable going to the doctor or going to the hospital when they’re unwell, even long into adulthood.”
“We know art has a big impact on the way kids perceive pain, the anxiety that they’re feeling. It improves mood – not just for the kids on the ward but the staff as well.”
Now everyone who visits the Children's Ward can feel the love and joy in this space too!
“A special thank you to the Rotary Club of Box Hill Burwood for funding this beautiful artwork. It has brought some much needed life and colour to the Children’s Ward!” says Dr Costa-Pinto.
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What if your dearly-loved child has asthma? And pneumonia and COVID... all at the same time?
Leaving his five-year-old lungs gasping for breath as he looks up at you from a hospital bed.
My name is Beck Aston. I’m a registered nurse caring for your children or grandchildren in the Children’s Ward at Box Hill Hospital. It’s the only public Children’s Ward in the eastern region. The above scenario is a true story.
It happened just weeks ago to young Miles, one of our child patients. I’m sure you can imagine the distress of his mother, Karen. The heartbreak as she watched her son struggle for air. That’s why I’m asking for your help today.
Your generous gift today goes towards items such as vital signs monitors that help track oxygen levels and heart rates in critically ill children.
As well as vital signs monitors, your kindness also goes towards equipment such as portable vein-finding machines and other vital equipment.
And to help make the hospital experience less scary for children and families, your gift could even help bring clown doctors into the ward.
Because when children are ill, you want to provide the best experience for them... right here in your local community.
You can help turbocharge the work of your dedicated doctors and nurses who save the lives of children right here in your community.
Miles’ mother, Karen, recalls the trauma of rushing her son to hospital in an ambulance.
“It was absolutely horrific... He was completely exhausted from trying to breathe... I’ll never forget, he just looked up at me and said, ‘Mummy, I can’t breathe any more.’
That’s why Karen urges kind people like you to donate today.
Because your generosity means the incredible doctors and nurses in my team will have additional equipment to treat kids like her son.
Karen says the dedicated care her son received saved his life.
Karen says: “Without the care he received, I honestly think I would have lost my son. The staff went above and beyond. We forever will be in their debt.”
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Thanks to our local community, a new PET Scanner will soon be on its way to Box Hill Hospital.
Thanks to wonderful individuals, community groups and local businesses, patients with life-threatening illnesses will soon be able to get free, publicly available PET scans at Box Hill Hospital.
Community support means people like Margie (pictured) don’t have to wait months in agony for life-saving diagnosis and treatment.
"Kind-hearted community members have donated more than $2.1 million so far," says Veronica Lyons, Director, Eastern Health Foundation.
"Your wonderful donation will have a big impact for all patients who need a PET scan. Thank you so much!"
Eastern Health expect at least 1,000 patients a year will use the new PET Scanner – that’s about 50 a week. And with an ageing population, demand is expected to grow.
As many as 4,000 people a year could benefit from the PET Scanner in the future.
"Thanks to each and every donor, all patients will soon be able to get a free PET scan without having to wait for weeks or months when their health is on the line," says Veronica.
Eastern Health doctors and nurses appreciate this wonderful support, which will ensure patients get the best care available.
"Thank you for your gift towards the first lifesaving PET Scanner at Eastern Health. Your generosity is going to change lives, a truly special gift," says Veronica.
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Right now you can double the value of your donation when you help people with cancer, heart disease, dementia and other life threatening medical conditions to receive faster diagnosis and treatment.
Thank you to two wonderful donors, John and Margaret, who have generously agreed to match your gift towards the first PET Scanner at Eastern Health.
This means when you make a donation, they will match your gift with another donation of the same amount, doubling your impact to help people when they are at their most vulnerable.
Whats is a PET Scanner?
The PET (Positron Emission Tomography) Scanner is a medical imaging machine that uses substances labelled with a radioactive tracer to show how your tissues and organs are functioning. It provides more detail and can detect some diseases before other imaging tests like CT and MRI.
There is no publicly available PET Scanner within the Eastern Health catchment area. Patients who need one must travel to other areas. Or use a private provider... not everyone can afford that.
Meet Margie
Margie is a wife, mother and grandmother. She is now retired, but there was a time when she was terrified she wouldn’t make it to retirement.
"For 12 weeks, I suffered terrible pain, fatigue, sight problems and headaches. I could not get out of bed for days at a time. But the doctors couldn’t tell what was wrong with me.
"It was a PET scan that finally identified what was wrong with my body. Ultimately, it saved my life," explains Margie.
"I had a condition called giant cell vasculitis. The PET scan showed my aorta (which is the main artery that carries blood away from your heart to the rest of your body), was inflamed. My immune system thought there was some sort of germ in my aorta. But it was fighting something that wasn’t there.
"I only got my diagnosis because I had the PET scan. Because I now know that MRI and CT scans look at the size and shape of your body structures... while PET scans can tell you what is going on inside them."
Your gift towards a new PET Scanner will save the lives of people like Margie
Please give towards the first life-saving PET Scanner at Eastern Health and help change lives.
Donate today and your gift will be doubled in value by John and Margaret. They have offered to match your gift and gifts from other kind supporters like you, up to the value of $100,000.
Donate now
- Online (your receipt will be sent immediately)
- By phone on 03 9895 4608
- Postage free to Reply Paid 86164 BOX HILL VIC 3128
- In person at any Eastern Health hospital
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Kip, a Staghound cross Kelpie, and her handler, Danielle, visited the cancer ward at Box Hill Hospital recently – brightening the day for staff and patients receiving treatment.
“The joy on everyone’s face when Kip arrived was so moving!” says Daniel Goodman, Nurse Unit Manager.
“It’s a simple thing to have a dog visit, but it was evident that Pet Therapy can significantly reduce people’s stress and improve their wellbeing.”
Kip, who is part of the Delta Therapy Dogs program, will be visiting the cancer ward each fortnight for the foreseeable future.
This is only possible thanks to the amazing generosity of Philip, a patient who made a wonderful donation to the cancer ward to say thank you for the two years of life-saving treatment he received after he was diagnosed with melanoma in 2019.
“I hadn’t realised how beneficial Pet Therapy could be,” explains Philip. “Like many of the staff and patients who met Kip on the first day of the program, I was overcome with emotion. Kip had a powerful impact – his visit brought smiles and tears of joy to the ward.”
As Nurse Daniel explains, “Pet Therapy is a fantastic addition to the care we provide at Eastern Health. We are immensely grateful for Philip’s generous support”.
Visit here to make a donation to support patients receiving cancer treatment at Eastern Health.
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Congratulations to the 22 researchers who received an Eastern Health Foundation Research & Innovation Grant this year.
More than 150 research grants have been awarded to Eastern Health staff in the last ten years, thanks to the generous philanthropic support of individuals, community groups and businesses.
“Thanks to the commitment of our philanthropic donors, Eastern Health is able to support ongoing research to help discover new treatments and cures to advance healthcare for generations to come,” says Veronica Lyons, Director, Eastern Health Foundation.
Thank you very much to the following supporters and many individual donors and families who make these grants possible:
- APH Philanthropic Foundation
- BankVic
- Greek Orthodox Community of Box Hill
- The Hayward Family
- The Pam and Alfred Lavey Trust
- Robert C Bulley OAM Charitable Fund
- The Sammons Family
- The Williams Family
“New treatments and discoveries in healthcare are made possible by generous community members,” says Veronica. “We are most grateful for the invaluable support donors provide in advancing research at Eastern Health.”
Find out how to sponsor an Eastern Health Research & Innovation Grant here or call 03 9895 4608 for a confidential discussion today.
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The Shades of Pink Diamond Race Day took place recently, marking four years of this special event.
Shades of Pink raise funds to support patients at Eastern Health Breast and Cancer Centre, part of Maroondah Hospital.
This year’s event raised $38,217!
"Shades of Pink is a community group committed to supporting women with breast cancer and giving back to their local community," explains Veronica Lyons, Director, Eastern Health Foundation.
"We are so grateful to have such wonderful supporters, joining us in our vision to deliver great care, everywhere, every time.
"Thank you to everyone involved!" says Veronica.
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Congratulations to Professor Julie Considine and her team on being recently awarded Best Scientific Paper at the International Conference for Emergency Nurses and having their research published in the International Emergency Nursing Journal.
After receiving an Eastern Health Foundation Innovation & Research Grant in 2019, Professor Julie Considine and her team set out to measure the impact on older people who have a long stay in the Emergency Department.
"We focussed on the physical and psychological impact on older people who stayed for more than four hours," explains Professor Considine. “We measured anxiety, comfort and safety levels”.
"We know that older patients are likely to be more seriously ill when they arrive," says Professor Considine.
"Compared to younger patients, older patients are also more likely to need hospital admission. They often spend more time in the Emergency Department as well.
"This group of patients are commonly impacted by cognitive impairment, delirium, anxiety and depression," she explains, "so we tend to see a higher risk of rapid decline once they arrive at the hospital."
"We wondered if the time they spent in the Emergency Department had an adverse effect on their health, so we applied for an Eastern Health Foundation Research and Innovation Grant to find out”.
The study, funded entirely by a generous donation from Zouki, concluded that levels of anxiety and comfort in older patients who had an extended stay in the Emergency Department were relatively similar to those who had a shorter stay.
"The good news is that the impact of an extended length of stay appears minimal," says Professor Considine. "There were no strong associations identified between length of stay and comfort during Emergency Department care".
“This research reassures us that the care we are providing in our Emergency Departments at Eastern Health is meeting the needs of older patients who are clinically stable and able to communicate freely. We are now focusing on vulnerable older persons who may have issues with cognition or communication, who are in isolation for infection control, or who are clinically unwell.
“It’s really important that we work out a way to evaluate anxiety and comfort in this group of older persons with complex care needs,” she explains.
Professor Considine and her team would like to thank the philanthropic community of donors who made this, and other research projects, possible.
"Research is over and above our core funding for healthcare," she explains. “Our research would not be possible without our wonderful donors!”
As Veronica Lyons, Director, Eastern Health Foundation further explains, "community generosity means Eastern Health researchers are better able to discover new treatments and improve care."
“Philanthropic individuals, businesses and community groups provide seed funding, ongoing financial support and significant donations so researchers can focus on enhancing patient care,” says Veronica.
“Donors who support research make a difference in the lives of our patients every day, and help improve healthcare for all of us.”
Find out more about the Eastern Health Foundation Research & Innovation Grants program at easternhealthfoundation.org.au
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A message for Eastern Health Foundation donors and supporters.
Thank you for your kindness and ongoing support for patients and their loved ones at Eastern Health.
YOU are a wonderful partner in healthcare for people throughout your community.
Your doctors, nurses and medical care teams are so grateful for your amazing support over the past few years.
With your help and that of other kind-hearted donors like you, more patients now have access to additional lifesaving medical equipment and innovative programs and services.
You’re helping to provide world-class medical care, right here in your local community.
We are pleased to share with you the achievements and major advancements in patient care, research and medical equipment over the past decade that you have made possible.
Your gifts make a difference in the lives of local people every day,and help improve healthcare in Melbourne’s east and beyond.
Without supporters like you, researchers at Eastern Health wouldn’t be able to discover new treatments and improve care. And staff would not have the opportunity to develop their skills through formal education as provided by donor funded scholarships.
Without you, additional state-of-the-art equipment wouldn’t be available for our medical teams to diagnose, treat, and provide great care to the patients admitted to our hospitals every day.
$28million+ has been generously donated between 2011 and 2021, helping Eastern Health to deliver ‘great care, everywhere, every time’.
This is the result of the extraordinary generosity and foresight of individuals, community groups, trusts and foundations, corporate sponsors and bequestors who care deeply about public healthcare.
From 2011-2021, your support has made possible:
- 131 research grants enabling our staff to investigate innovative healthcare pathways that improve outcomes for our patients.
- 100 staff development scholarships enabling our health workers to become leaders in their fields through postgraduate education.
- More than 200 pieces of medical equipment across our sites to stay at the cutting-edge of medicine and enhance the delivery of patient care.
- Flagship programs that have transformed the way we deliver healthcare.
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Staff and students at Lilydale Primary School recently held a festive fundraising day to show their gratitude and support for healthcare workers at Eastern Health.
Students made a gold coin donation and wore festive clothes, colours, and costumes. In all, they raised $190.
“Given the trying times, we wanted to show our continued support for all that Eastern Health does for us, particularly during COVID”, says Mrs Orlando, JSC Co-ordinator, Lilydale Primary School.
This is the second year the Junior School Council has organised a fundraiser in support of Eastern Health.
“Thank you to all the students, staff and parents at Lilydale Primary School for your ongoing support and generous donations,” says Veronica Lyons, Director, Eastern Health Foundation. “It’s so inspiring!”
“Support from the community means so much to our frontline teams and makes a difference in the lives of many people when they need it most!” Veronica says.
Pictured: Zoe and Beatrice in their festive outfits, raising funds to support healthcare workers at Eastern Health.
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