Rehab clinic pleads for support - ABC Online

Posted November 27, 2012 11:34:08

The managers of a Toowoomba rehabilitation clinic say they need community and government support to operate the centre.

Sunrise Way has yet to see its first patients, despite officially opening three years ago.

President Doug Harland says the therapeutic community centre is "key ready" but they are still working to find funding to operate the centre.

Mr Harland will meet the Darling Downs Hospital and Health Service board today to discuss funding options.

However, he says community help will also be needed.

"If we go with the original model somehow we've got to find $1.3 million a year," he said.

"If we can get that from the community we would go with that model because that would be a much longer stay but with the medical model it'll be a short stay and we need about ... $200,000 from the community and ... [there will] probably be some cash flow required in the start-up period and if the hospital's not prepared to support that we'll have to find that from the community as well.

"I guess [the meeting] it's really to brief them and get all the board members acquainted with Sunrise Way and where we've been and where we're at basically and how this led to the model that's being developed," he said.

"We're hoping to get our lease renewed on the building and also to get the full board support behind this new idea to get the centre operational."

Topics: healthcare-facilities, toowoomba-4350