• Hospital accomodation at Rotary Lodge
In 1996 Cleveland Rotary took on a major project to build a lodge on Redlands Hospital grounds, to accommodate Redlanders and others who needed temporary or emergency accommodation at Redlands Hospital.
This would be of particular benefit to Moreton Bay Islanders if ferry timetables made it difficult to return home after treatment or if friends or relatives of trauma or terminally ill cases needed temporary accommodation.
The Lodge consists of two self-contained apartments, each accommodating two people.
At the November meeting of the SMBI Forum, the issue of discharge of islanders from hospital was raised by Glynis Enright, convener of the Health and Ageing Working Group of the Forum, and members of the Forum decided to investigate usage of the Lodge.
A preliminary meeting was held on 12 January to discuss the issue with representatives of the SMBI Forum, Cleveland Rotary Club, and Redlands Hospitals.
The meeting agreed on the need to ensure both hospital medical and ancillary staff, and emergency and medical teams on the islands were fully aware of the existence and purpose of the Lodge.
Both Hospitals staff and Cleveland Rotary had become aware of the need for refurbishment of the Lodge, and Rotary will investigate ways to undertake and fund the necessary work in the near future.
Forum representatives plan a further meeting with Redlands Hospital representatives to clearly define the purpose of the Lodge, and to firm up methods of ensuring relevant staff at the Hospital and Islanders are aware of the Lodge when and if they need it.
Rotary Lodge is not intended as cheap accommodation, and is reserved for cases of genuine need.
If an islander finds themselves in a position where they may need to take advantage of the Lodge, they should contact the After-Hours Nurse Manager or a Redlands Hospital staff member, or phone the hospital switchboard on 3488 3111.
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