Friends of Palliative Care Inc Community Awareness Event
Palliative Care – Supporting What Matters Most
Date: Thursday, 19th June 2025
Time: 9:00 AM – 1:00 PM
Location: Club Maitland City; Diamond Room.
Join us for an informative and supportive event focused on palliative care. Local providers will deliver short presentations featuring information about services, resources & compassionate care available for those facing end-of-life care.
Whether you are a caregiver, healthcare professional, or simply want to learn more about this vital area of care, this event is for you.
What to Expect:
- Insightful presentations on the Palliative Care services available in our community
- Opportunities to meet local service providers
- Information stalls offering valuable resources and guidance
- A welcoming and safe space to ask questions and learn more
- Refreshments throughout the morning
This event is free to attend, but registration is essential.
Register online today to secure your spot!
https://www.stickytickets.com.au/5U9FH
Don’t miss out on this opportunity to raise awareness, gain knowledge, and connect with the community in a meaningful way.
This event is kindly funded by the NSW Government LSCA Grants program.
Oceanic Palliative Care Conference Scholarship
Palliative Care Australia
Oceanic Palliative Care Conference
Location: Brisbane Convention & Exhibition Centre
Date: 10 – 12 September 2025
Friends of Palliative Care (FOPC) are offering an opportunity to support Doctors, Nurses and Allied Health Professionals working in the area of palliative and end-of-life care, to attend the 2025 Palliative Care Australia conference.
This support will cover the full cost of conference registration, valued at $1,290 (accommodation, flight and transport costs are not covered by FOPC and are to be paid for by the individual). There are a limited number of scholarships available.
The Oceanic Palliative Care Conference (OPCC)is one of the biggest, premier palliative care conference in the southern hemisphere. Over the years it has brought together 1000+experts, professionals and decision makers from across Australia, New Zealand and the broader Oceanic region to shape the future of care. This year OPCC will take us a step further in learning and sharing real world solutions that respond to the challenges of an ageing population. Our theme for 2025 is ‘connecting systems for better care’.
More information about this year’s conference can be found at https://icebergevents.eventsair.com/25opcc/
Friends of Palliative Care Inc
Friends of Palliative Care (FOPC) are a small enthusiastic volunteer committee, dedicated to raising funds in support of Palliative Care services in the Maitland, Cessnock, Kurri Kurri, Singleton and Dungog region.
By fundraising, FOPC assist Palliative Care services to meet the needs of the terminally ill person and their families and carers. This includes, but not limited to;
- The purchase/rental of equipment to support palliative care clients in the community.
- Establishment of pharmaceutical accounts to support the cost of medications for palliative clients.
- Funding of “bucket list” experiences for patients receiving end of life care.
- Sponsorship of regular attendance at courses and seminars by the Nurses and volunteers of palliative care to enhance their skills and knowledge in the area of palliative care.
Our recent fundraising efforts have enabled us to offer financial support to health care workers to attend the conference.
More information on the work FOPC carries out can be found at www.friendsofpalliativecare.org.au
Eligibility
To be eligible to submit and an application, please be sure you satisfy the following criteria:
• Doctor, Nurse or Allied Health Professional
• Employed in the Maitland, Cessnock, Kurri Kurri, Singleton and Dungog region
• Work in or have a demonstrated interest to work in palliative and end-of-life care
• Be available to attend the conference (evidence of managers approval required).
• Agree to submit a short report to the FOPC committee about your key learnings.
Closing Date for Applications: Friday 20th June 2025.
Successful applicants will be notified via email by Sunday 22nd June 2025. For any enquiries or to get a copy of the application form, please email us: friendsofpalliativecare@gmail.com. Please ensure you meet the eligibility criteria.
Annual Walk & Fun Run
The Friends of Palliative Care Inc first Walk & Fun Run was held in 1994 with a walk from the Mater Hospital to East Maitland. The Walk & Fun Run then became an annual event, being held out at Tocal for 23 years before moving to Walka Water Works in 2018.
Our annual event includes a 10KM FUN Run, a 5KM FUN Run and a 5KM Walk which is suitable for all ages, stages and abilities, we welcome prams and wheelchairs. Please no pets. We will have food and beverages for sale as well as raffle tickets, with the raffle being drawn at the conclusion of the event. The morning will conclude with a small ceremony to remember those we have lost and to support those currently fighting.
The 30th Annual Walk & Fun Run was held on Sunday 10th March 2024 at Maitland Regional Athletics Centre and raised an incredible $30,070!
Palliative Care Collaboration Meetings
These meetings bring together palliative care services, health and allied health professionals
They aim to assist care and medical providers gain a better understanding of how each team works and discuss how we can work together to better care for individuals in Palliative and End of Life Care in our region.
Nurses, General Practitioners, Pharmacists, Palliative Care Doctors, liked minded community groups and, individuals interested in volunteering are warmly invited to attend.
Our Collaborative Meetings are held in October.
Please keep an eye on our social media platforms for event announcements and updates.
Annual Mango Fundraiser
Each year Friends of Palliative Care Inc runs a mango drive. This is an important fundraiser for our organisation.
7kg trays of delicious Bowen mangos are shipped from QLD and distributed in late November early December. (Depending on the crop)
A portion of each sale is donated to FOPC Inc. so we can continue to support individuals and families in end of life and palliative care.
Please follow us on social media to keep up to date with our fundraiser. We typically begin to accept orders in September, with orders and payment due by October.
Annual General Meeting
The Friends of Palliative Care Annual General Meeting is held at the end of October / early November each year.
All members of our community are invited to attend.
As an entirely volunteer-based organisation, all office-holder positions are open for reappointment every year. We rely on volunteers filling these positions so that we can continue to offer our services and operate our Not For Profit organisation.
The Board of Volunteers for 2025 are as follows:
President: Montana Duggan
Vice President: Bel McQuillen
Secretary: Rhiannon Varley
Vice Secretary: Tania McCarthy
Treasurer: Lynne Howard
Vice Treasurer: Louise Lennox
Ordinary Member: Alex Duggan
Patron: Simon Richards
