Public fundraising critical for a safer future, says St John
The national fundraising week for the Order of St John (22-28 June 2009) is drawing nearer, and area chairman Stu Chalmers is appealing to the public to make all possible financial support available to ensure a safer future for the Bay.
Although the Government pays St John for hospital transfer costs and medical emergencies, ACC covers accident call-outs, and patients have to contribute $50 per trip in an ambulance, St John suffered heavy losses of $10 million in the last financial year. The Government has responded by lifting its payouts, but funding remains a major concern if the organisation is to operate at its best, so this year’s fundraising aims are set high.
The hall St John currently occupies at the showgrounds, used for first aid courses and the local Youth Division, is getting too small and is in need of an upgrade, and as the demand for ambulance services is increasing in the Bay, the need for a second ambulance is probably not that far away, Mr Chalmers added.
“St John has also outgrown the facility at the medical centre and although it’s not urgent—our lease expires in 2019—we are looking into building our own facility. It is important to us to have all operations under one roof, where we can house the ambulance, the first aid courses and the Youth Division, which is running up to maximum numbers at the moment. We also have to have proper overnight accommodation. We’re supposed to be on the ambulance within 10 minutes of the call coming, which means volunteers should be within two to three minutes’ drive of the station. If we don’t provide good accommodation, we cannot call on volunteers living further away,” he said.
A purpose-built facility would cost an estimated $600,000 to $800,000, Mr Chalmers said, and the eight St John committee members have two building sites in mind. Mr Chalmers indicated that these locations were independent of any potential medical facilities for Golden Bay and had been chosen on the condition that these were absolutely free from any risk of flooding.
“There are advantages in being independent and we want to get this done as quickly as possible. It’s important to us that we own the piece of land and we have control over it because we cover such a wide range of services.”
These include a reliable ambulance service crewed by trained and dedicated volunteers, but volunteers also run the Youth Division, first aid courses, and provide first aid assistance at events. Furthermore, St John monitors personal alarms and is looking into bringing to the Bay a daily Caring-Caller service for people living alone.
Though there is a nationwide shortage of ambulance staff, St John in Golden Bay has never had to send out a single-crewed ambulance so far, said Mr Chalmers. Despite this, it would still like to hear from more people willing to be trained for the ambulance service.
“Nobody believes they’ll need an ambulance, but on average we respond to one call every 36 hours, so the ambulance is not gathering dust. The number of callouts is increasing every year as the population in the Bay increases and as the summer months are getting busier. St John is simply a service for this community must have,” said Mr Chalmers, who has 38 years of service under his belt.
Appeal envelopes will be sent out. “And although there’ll be a Christchurch address on the return envelope, every cent raised in Golden Bay will also be spent in Golden Bay,” assured Mr Chalmers.
Others support St John financially by making regular contributions through the Supporter Scheme. The scheme costs a family $45 annually for free ambulance services and is $30 for an individual. For other St John enquiries contact Stu Chalmers on 525 9492 and Kirsty McLeod for the Supporter Scheme on 525 8403.
Ina Holst
