Our clients in regional and remote areas miss out on very important face to face meetings with allied health professionals who specialise in MND. There are currently no MND Clinics outside of South East Queensland. Regional MND Clinics will be held in Cairns, Townsville, Bundaberg and Toowoomba. Allowing MND patients in the outer regions of ...
Motor Neurone Disease Queensland
Regional Queensland Motor Neurone Disease Clinic Days
GOAL
$15,004
Australia > QLD > Regional
10/01/2024 > 21/01/2025
Field of Interest
- Health/wellbeing and medical research
- Individual/family services and support
Target Population
- People with a disability, illness or disease
- People experiencing socio-economic disadvantage or vulnerability
Motor Neurone Disease Queensland
As Queensland’s leading organisation wholly focused on supporting people living with Motor Neurone Disease — and their families, friends and carers, MND Queensland offers understanding and practical assistance by delivering information, education and specialist support services. Our mission is to ensure access to best practice care and support for every Queenslander impacted by MND and contribute to finding a cure.
Diagnosis with a rare condition is overwhelming. A specialised organisation, MND Queensland provides practical assistance to people living with MND.
MND is a condition that progresses quickly, so it’s important that those impacted have access to experts who can provide proactive support. MND Queensland employs occupational therapists, speech therapists and physiotherapists trained in working with clients with MND. For instance, exercise can be unsafe and fatiguing for people with MND, so it’s essential that care providers have the right experience to keep patients mobile for longer, but no do harm.
Early intervention is key to managing MND symptoms, allowing for confident planning as the condition progresses. Because our team has an intimate understanding of the complex needs of MND, we can anticipate, be more responsive and provide more effective supports. Research shows a multidisciplinary support maximises quality of life for people with MND. We are able to coordinate someone’s total care plan, providing an efficient and reassuring ‘home base’ for those newly diagnosed or needing increased support in managing symptoms. There is no known cause or cure for MND. The average lifespan from diagnosis is 27 months. Every diagnosis is terminal and 2 Australians die every day from MND and another 2 are diagnosed every day.
Project Summary
Our clients in regional and remote areas miss out on very important face to face meetings with allied health professionals who specialise in MND. There are currently no MND Clinics outside of South East Queensland.
Regional MND Clinics will be held in Cairns, Townsville, Bundaberg and Toowoomba. Allowing MND patients in the outer regions of Queensland to access best practice care through accessing the expertise of the only allied health professionals working exclusively with the MND population.
The MND specialist team will include a Physiotherapist, Occupational Therapist, MND Advisor, Speech Therapist and Dietitian.
Consulting with specialists in MND means that patients and their carers will get sound advice on strategies to cope with the progression of the disease and stay educated on next steps. This includes mobility equipment prescription, swallowing and breathing advice as well as home modification advice. Importantly, these clinics will also allow our specialists to direct and teach carers in manual handing and practical care strategies.
‘Banking’ a patient’s voice before they lose their ability to speak, has a significant positive impact on the way that patients can conduct their affairs moving forward. Recording common phrases and words (even their coffee order!) in a client’s own voice is incredibly empowering. Using the latest text to voice technology, means that patients can act independently when communicating with their family, medical teams and in community. Having a Speech Therapist and MND Advisor on hand means that this service can be offered during the clinic.
Once clients and carers have consulted with our Allied Health Professionals face to face during a clinic, transitioning to a Tele-Health model will be smoother and therefore more successful outcomes will be achieved.
Project Outcomes
The aim of this project is in line with our mission - to ensure access to best practice care and support for every Queenslander impacted by MND.
This will give MND patients outside of South East Queensland (SEQ) face to face access to our expert MND professionals. Travel for MND patients is impractical due to both fatigue and the logistical difficulties of long distance travel with electric wheelchairs, Bipap machines etc.
There are currently no MND Clinics outside of SEQ.
Anecdotal evidence will be almost immediate. We will conduct quantitative surveys after each Clinic Day to evaluate the success of the clinic. We know that these clinics will build relationships with clients that will make follow up, on-line consultations much easier for both clients and allied health specialists. Ongoing retention statistics will also be measured to determine the efficacy of a regional service delivery model.
Budget Breakdown
TOTAL BUDGET: $31,587
FUNDING
| Funding source | Amount |
|---|---|
| MND Queensland (confirmed) | $16,583 |
| Funding gap (unconfirmed) | $15,004 |
EXPENSES
| Expense item | Amount |
|---|---|
| Regional airtravel and transfers (Cairns, Townsville, Bundaberg, Toowoomba) | $7,413 |
| Travel expenses | $7,060 |
| Venue hire | $800 |
| Wages | $16,584 |
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