Taking 114,926 steps for children at Eastern Health

• Local psychologist Emma-Rose Parsons ran 100 kilometres from Eastern Health Healesville to Eastland, to raise fund for Eastern Health paediatric services.
• Ms Parsons was joined on her 15 hour journey by various Eastern Health staff.
• The 100 kilometre run, dubbed “Mountain to Melbourne” has raised over $51,000 during this year’s run so far

“Mountain to Melbourne 2025 was an epic journey. It was hard.  It was powerful.  It was worth every one of the 114,926 steps I took.”

In her bid to raise money for Eastern Health paediatric services, local psychologist Emma-Rose Parsons ran 100 kilometres from Eastern Health Healesville to Eastland Shopping Centre in Ringwood.

During her 15-hour journey, Dr Parsons ran to several major Eastern Health sites, being welcomed and cheered on by staff.

“It was incredible. It’s hard to explain just how uplifting it was to see so many people so invested in Mountain to Melbourne. It was breathtaking,” she said.

At various points during her run, Ms Parsons was also joined on the track by Eastern Health staff members including Clinical Director of Paediatrics, Dr Tanya Newnham, among others.

“This is such a wonderful opportunity to raise fund to support the children that visit us at Eastern Health. The funds will help us buy equipment which will help us reduce fear, pain and anxiety in those children,” Dr Newnham said.

“It makes an enormous difference to their inpatient stay and we’d like to extend this to children who are also outpatients to reduce their nervousness during their hospital experience.”

Above: Emma-Rose Parsons is cheered on by staff at Eastern Health Angliss, Image: Eastern Health

While Ms Parsons was able to complete her arduous run, it didn’t come without some bumps in the road.

“About 20 minutes after leaving Lilydale, I started to come undone. I had eaten half an energy bar that just didn’t sit well and my stomach was cramping.

“It was a day of challenges to overcome, as most ultra running is.  It really parallels the experience of being in hospital – navigating challenges,” Ms Parsons said.

This year, Ms Parsons’ Mountain to Melbourne run has so far raised almost $52,000.

It isn’t too late to donate and share appreciation for Ms Parson’s incredible efforts.