2026 Funding Update

For 2026, the following will be funded in the Grampians region:

Patient Family Accommodation – contribute to the creation of a designated patient family accommodation room, as part of its wider facility. Each room within the facility will be offered at no or low cost, helping to reduce financial and emotional burden for families travelling for care.

Allied Health Equipment, Training, and Assessment Tools – providing resources, mobile technology, and training to support allied health teams (OT, Speech Pathology, Physiotherapy, Psychology, Dietetics) to deliver care both remotely and in patients’ homes, improving access and workforce retention.

Advancing Care Through Cutting-Edge Equipment – purchase of four specialised pieces of equipment, including a neonatal resuscitation cot, resuscitation mannequin, infant hip examiner trainer, and VR device for paediatric procedures, to upskill staff and improve patient experience across the region.

Paediatric Skills Uplift Training – delivery of in-person and digital multidisciplinary training programs to consolidate staff skills across the Grampians region, support paediatric workforce capacity, meet annual training requirements, and improve care outcomes for children and families.

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Building on the funding from 2025

Grampians Health is the largest regional referral health service in western Victoria, providing comprehensive care to a population of more than 250,000 people across areas ranging from Bacchus Marsh through to the South Australian border. Grampians Health requires new life-saving and state-of-the-art equipment.

• Inclusive Adventure Play Space at Patient Family Accommodation – Located on-site, the play area will be thoughtfully designed to be accessible for children of all abilities. Featuring natural materials like logs and stones and centred around a large existing tree transformed into a treehouse, this sensory-rich environment will promote creativity, motor skill development, problem-solving, and self-directed play.
• Multidisciplinary Paediatric Skills Uplift – This training will cover online paediatric resuscitation courses supplemented by in-person sessions, simulation exercises with culturally diverse mannequins, and tailored education programs for specific communities, supported by mobile simulation units and paediatric specialists. It will also up-skill educators and multidisciplinary staff to deliver the latest evidence-based paediatric care consistently throughout the region.
• Delivery of world-leading paediatric equipment for newborns – Ballarat Base Hospital’s Special Care Nursery and Outpatient Clinic will receive nine new breastfeeding chairs – vital equipment that delivers world-class care for vulnerable newborns. Funding support from the Good Friday Appeal will also the purchase of additional paediatric-specific equipment, including the purchase of five specialised cots that ensure the safety of newborns and three phototherapy units to better treat newborns with moderate to severe jaundice.

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Building on the funding from 2024

Grampians Health is the largest regional referral health service in western Victoria, providing comprehensive care to a population of more than 250,000 people across areas ranging from Bacchus Marsh through to the South Australian border. The hospital was able to elevate their paediatric services with the purchase of life-saving and state-of-the-art equipment, thanks to the Good Friday Appeal.  

• Infant Resuscitator Cots x 4 – from premature births and labour complications, to low birth-weight babies or those that are very unwell, there are many reasons babies require resuscitator cots, which provide critical breathing support. They are used in the Maternity Unit and Special Care Nursery and in clinical emergencies in the Emergency Department and the Operating Theatre. These devices come fully equipped with life-saving features such as a heat lamp, autobreath and an in-built oximeter. With battery back-up, these cots also allow the safe transportation of critically ill babies to the RCH if required.
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• Maternal Ultrasound x 2 – Purchased two maternal ultrasound machines to allow more complex scans to be carried out. These devices are used over 1,000 times each month and help to identify high-risk pregnancies or any fetal abnormalities as early as possible. This has had a remarkable impact on regional families, ensuring that babies can be delivered safely and as close to home as possible.
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• Paediatric Anaesthesia machines – supporting surgical procedures across the service. These high performing machines will maximise productivity in the operating theatre, and importantly, will help future-proof the hospital’s electronic medical record integration by standardising patient monitoring.
  

“This generous grant from the Good Friday Appeal has helped us transform the pre- and post-natal care we provide to the families of Western Victoria. Our new equipment ensures the babies born in our community receive the best possible start in life, close to home,”

Dale Fraser, Grampians Health Chief Executive Officer.