We often receive inspiring and powerful messages from patients and their loved ones regarding our service. With their permission, we share them with you, as told ‘In Their Own Words’.
“I just want to say thank you, thank you, thank you! If it wasn’t for your wonderful service, Dr Gomes would not have picked up my husband’s heart problem…a problem which resulted in an emergency triple bypass, from which my husband is currently recovering from in hospital. If it was not for a chance phone call from you, offering a 2 yearly check-up, we could quite easily have lost him. It is for people like my husband that makes your service so worthwhile. Thank you again x”
As a firm believer in equitable access to healthcare for rural and regional Australians, Melbourne-based Cardiac Sonographer Mitchell Hubble has never let distance get in his way.
Mitchell embodies the Heart of Australia mindset that all Australians have the right to access quality healthcare services, regardless of where they live.
“Since I can remember, I’ve always wanted to be involved in healthcare. I love helping people, and being able to do that for a living is a childhood dream come true.
“When I was younger, I spent my gap year volunteering overseas in both Africa and Thailand. I had the opportunity to teach basic maths and English to a wonderful community, and to spend time renovating a crèche.
“My time there highlighted the value and joy of helping others. The whole thing opened my eyes to the difference one person can make if they’re willing to help and to travel the distance necessary to get to where you’re needed.
Since then Mitchell went on to qualify as a Cardiac Sonographer, a rewarding career that provides him with ongoing opportunities to make a difference in people’s lives. Based in a private hospital in Melbourne, Mitchell is one of a growing number of Heart of Australia team members who travel interstate to provide health services to rural and regional Queenslanders.
“My manager was the one to tell me about the Heart of Australia program. She’d done several rotations in the Heart Trucks herself, and she was confident that I would love being a part of it and make a real difference.
And knowing I’d previously travelled as far as Africa and Thailand to volunteer – she knew a quick flight to Queensland wouldn’t put me off.
Hearing her talk about the program and her experiences with the patients and the team, I knew I wanted to be a part of it.”
“In 2019 I signed up with Heart of Australia and haven’t looked back. It didn’t take long for me to fall in love with the work and the organisation. And it was amazing just how quickly I could make a real difference to so many lives.
“That first weekend on the Heart Truck was one of the best weekends of my life.
“Growing up in Melbourne, you are so accustomed to having access to all the health services you need on your doorstep. So, it was a real shock when I realised that if the Heart of Australia service wasn’t out there, these people simply wouldn’t get the services they need.
“Being part of the team that delivers that service is incredibly fulfilling.
“Many of the locals will tell you directly how the service is helping and changing their community – making specialist medical care accessible to people that in a lot of cases, have never had it. They’re so appreciative, and when I tell patients I’m from Melbourne, the look of gratitude on their face is priceless.”
Mitchell says working with the Heart of Australia team is also incredibly rewarding.
“From day one, I was welcomed with open arms and instantly became a part of the team. The whole team is friendly and easy to get along with, and their professionalism and skills ensure any challenges that arise – including the occasional flooded road or natural disaster are overcome quickly.
“I’ll never forget the end of my first day. The whole team was heading for dinner when we bumped into a group of patients from earlier in the day. They were just so grateful that we’d brought the service to town. The whole team ended up with free beer, and big smiles – the kind you’ll never get in a big city.
“When we were heading out to the next town, a local Woman caught on that we had a six-hour drive ahead of us. And delivered us freshly made pumpkin soup and scones at 7:30 in the morning. Heaven knows what time she was up to start baking them. You just don’t get that experience in the city.
“It only took one weekend, but I fell in love with rural Australia.
Encouraging people in rural and regional communities to prioritise their health can be tricky. Fortunately, our long-running supporter IOR is helping us spread the word via a moveable campaign on one of their fuel tankers.
If you’ve been on the road in outback Queensland recently, we hope this visually striking fuel tanker has caught your eye. The idea to wrap a tanker in decals promoting the Heart of Australia services was the brainchild of the IOR team. IOR Managing Director, Stewart Morland, said the tanker initiative aims to encourage as many people as possible to access the specialist services that Heart of Australia offer.
“We understand how resilient people in the bush can be. They put the needs of their family, their business, and their property before themselves. But, as people, we also know that sometimes the best thing we can do is to look after our health.”
“We hope that the promotion of Heart of Australia’s services on the side of our tanker reminds people to make their health a priority, just for a moment. It’s the best way to stay healthy enough to look after all those other important things in their life.”
IOR has a strong history of supporting rural communities through organisations that save lives and improve people’s wellbeing, including Heart of Australia.
“IOR is a family-owned business, and we take our regional roots very seriously. We understand how challenging it can be to access specialist health services when you live outside a capital city,” Mr Morland said.
“That’s why we jumped on board to support Heart of Australia from the outset.
The story of how IOR came on-board as a supporter is well entrenched in Heart of Australia’s origins.
Back when Heart of Australia was merely a dream, Dr Gomes was invited to present his vision, in five minutes at the end of a meeting in Toowoomba.
“It was one of the most amazing evenings of my life. As I walked off the stage, Stewart Morland jumped over a few chairs, walked up to me, handed me his business card, and said ‘Our company, IOR, we’re all about the bush. We understand what you’re trying to do and we think it’s very worthwhile,” Dr Gomes said.
“He told me if I could get the truck up and going that IOR would provide all the fuel we needed. It was just a handshake deal, based on a vision I had shared, but IOR has honoured that promise ever since.”
“It was one of the key moments in our history, where I finally believed that the dream was going to become a reality.”
“IOR has been with us every step of the way. They are quite literally the fuel that drives us from town to town, community to community. As the dream has grown to include more heart trucks and more towns, so has their support.
“We could not cover the vast distances we travel, and the number of towns and communities we serve without their ongoing fuel support. And now, with the addition of the new tanker artwork, they’re stepping it up once again, and helping us promote the importance of health to communities around the state.”
“We are incredibly grateful for their support.”
So if the IOR fuel tanker catches your eye, take a photo, use these tags (#HeartofAustralia #IOR), and don’t forget to put your health first.
We often receive inspiring and powerful messages from patients and their loved ones regarding our service. With their permission, we share them with you, as told ‘In Their Own Words’.
“I would be grateful if you would pass on our thanks to the Heart of Australia team who were in Blackall last week. My husband, Nigel, had an appointment with Dr Dashwood at 10 am last Friday (21st Feb). Following the consultation, Dr Dashwood requested that Nigel have an echo test. Reception advised us to come back at 3.30 pm for that to be done.
As we live 60 km from town on a black soil road, and storms had been coming up every afternoon, it was not possible for us to wait in town that long. Stormy clouds were already starting to appear at 11 am. If we had waited, it would have been 5.30 by the time we got home, given it takes an hour or so. I knew we could not take that risk. We simply can’t afford to get stuck on the road, as Nigel is 84 and in a wheelchair, and I am 77. There was no one who would come looking for us if we didn’t turn up.
The team quickly showed its flexibility, and even though it probably did not suit them very well, they rescheduled the test to 11.30 am. We certainly appreciated this accommodation to our circumstances. And it was just as well, as we were home by 1 pm, and it started raining half an hour later. That earlier appointment made all the difference to us.
We were very happy that over the next succeeding days, we have ended up with 5 inches (125mm). We are now cut off from town, but are very content, having been able to fulfil the appointment and are now enjoying the tinges of green grass coming through.
I was also grateful for the support of the men who assisted with the wheelchair, not just in and out of the bus, but also in and out of our vehicle. It was most appreciated.
Brianna is a rural medical student in her final year of medical school at UNSW, currently based in Wagga Wagga. She reached out to our team, with the support of her university, and asked if she could spend a month on board one of our heart trucks as part of a university elective.
Brianna was keen to work alongside our team, and experience the delivery of mobile specialist medical services to rural and regional Australians first hand.
We were delighted to be able to accommodate her request, and Brianna recently completed a month onboard HEART 2 with our HOA team.
Having grown up in Toowoomba, Brianna has a solid understanding of the challenges faced by people living outside capital cities when it comes to accessing healthcare.
“I grew up in Toowoomba, and as I grew older, I realised that even residents of relatively large towns can find it difficult to get specialist healthcare.
And thinking about that, I couldn’t imagine the stress remote area Australians would feel if they required the same,” Brianna said.
“In year 12, I had the opportunity to hear Dr Gomes speak at the Heart of Australia launch in 2014. I was already interested in rural health care, but after hearing him talk, I was very interested in such a unique initiative for specialist healthcare in the bush.
I had the chance to talk to him, and he told me that if I was ever doing a medical elective, I should let him know, so I did.
“A few years of medical school later I reached out, and I was thrilled when we found a way for me to carry out my elective on the Heart Truck.
Brianna was keen to learn all she could about Heart of Australia’s unique model for delivering specialist services, and to enhance her understanding of the challenges faced in delivering and accessing rural healthcare.
“One of the many reasons I’m so interested in rural healthcare is the number of unique challenges and issues that are created by the vast distances involved.
It takes several different people and organisations, each doing their bit, like pieces in a massive puzzle to deliver rural healthcare. Heart of Australia is a huge part of that.
“I firmly believe that in a country like ours, there is no reason that anyone should miss out on specialist healthcare.
And the way Heart of Australia brings specialist services to outback Queensland is revolutionary.
“During my time on the Heart Truck, I was welcomed with open arms, and quickly became part of the team. It’s a big family, and I’m so happy I could be part of it.
Being on HEART 2 was an extraordinary experience. It opened my eyes to the massive delivery reach these specialist clinics have. They are providing access to specialist options days, hours and hundreds of kilometres closer than ever before.
And that ease of access prompts more people to look into their health.
“The patients that I interacted with were so beautiful and lovely. The appreciation they showed was second to none. I got the opportunity to talk to some patients about why I was there.
Explaining that I’m heavily interested in rural healthcare. I can’t even describe the smiles I got. These communities don’t just want specialist healthcare, they need it.
And I’m so proud I could be part of providing that.
“Battling the grip of distance, specialist doctors make up a big chunk of the overall puzzle. But my time on the truck also showed me how crucial the non-medical team behind Heart of Australia’s operations is and the important role they play in delivering health care to rural communities.
And without all those impact-driven, passionate people working day-to-day on the trucks and at HQ, nothing would be possible.
Elements such as location and set up, all the way down to maintaining a secure and reliable internet connection may seem trivial, but they are essential to delivering the service.
“The logistical nightmare Heart of Australia deals with on a daily basis might be seen as a deal-breaker to many – enough to stop you from even starting such a service. However, the Heart of Australia team consistently battles through these hurdles, solving them one by one in order to deliver their desperately needed service to rural Australians.
Having spent a month on the truck, I know that’s revolutionary.”
“Health is a universal language, driven and reinforced by science.
But the people aspect is what drives me. Assisting patients to navigate tricky times, helping them to improve their lives, and ensuring they have access to quality medical care is what drives me.
And I know it’s what drives Heart of Australia.”
Heart of Australia will be officially launching a pilot student program, NextGen Medics in July 2020, with the first student rotation taking place later this year.
