Joan Whiting trustees hear expand-and-survive proposal
Joan Whiting Rest Home trustees met a “Save the Joan Whiting” group last Monday evening to hear proposals aimed at keeping the rest home running at its present location in Collingwood.
“The Friends of Joan Whiting are interested in a venture to expand the home to provide more rooms to generate more cash flow, and not only keep the Joan Whiting going but gradually refurbish it as well,” said Chris Mitson, chairperson of the Joan Whiting trust. “It’s an imaginative proposal.”
But he cautioned the community, “We can’t afford to get carried away with this until we make a proper analysis of all the financial implications. “This is not the silver bullet, but it is certainly worth looking at seriously and in detail.”
The Joan Whiting Trust is also looking hard at participating in the Integrated Health Services project that would bring together the community hospital, the medical centre and a rest home.
“The Joan Whiting Board is definitely interested in being part of that,” Mr Mitson said, “but we need a lot more detailed information about the design and layout of the new facility.
“We’re responsible for hundreds of thousands of dollars in community assets and we cannot simply drop that into the pool without being sure that the new rest home is a whole lot more than just a couple of corridors plonked down in the middle of the hospital.”
Mr Mitson said there was no doubt that the trustees were in a tough spot. Government subsidies for elderly care haven’t kept pace with rising costs—a problem right around the country for small rural rest homes.
“We are not a business in the traditional sense—we’re a non-profit, community service for our elderly. But we have to run the operation as though we are a business. But legally we cannot pass on our costs—the government subsidies are fixed and absolute and we cannot and would not charge private patients more than the person who is in the next room as a subsidised resident.”
Mr Mitson said that the good news for the community is that the new board is running at full strength—three new trustees joined last week, “and the skills mix includes significant financial experience. Plus a determination to do the best for our old people no matter what the future brings.”
The Joan Whiting Board’s next meeting is at the Junction Hotel, Takaka, Thursday 15 October with the open forum at 5pm.
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