All the latest news from Very Special Kids
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Road to Respite
On Tuesday 20 February Very Special Kids launched a significant partnership with the Royal Flying Doctor Service which will enable families living in regional areas that have a child with a life-threatening condition the opportunity to more easily access respite care.
Thanks to over $156,000 of funding from the William Buckland Foundation, Road to Respite is a joint initiative of the two charities, providing free-of-charge transport for regional children to Very Special Kids Hospice in Malvern.
To make a van booking please call the hospice on 03 9804 6237 or email bookings@vsk.org.au, the service is available for regional families only due to funding and will be subject to availability.
New videos for Very Special Kids - Family Support Services
Very Special Kids have created a brand new suite of videos providing information on our unique services. These videos are available for viewing on our website, on our YouTube channel and will be shared within the industry. Over the next few issues of Special Lives we will continue to share a different video with you.
Overcoming anxiety to use the hospice
By Abigail, mother supported by Very Special Kids.
"Letting your child stay overnight for the first time somewhere is a big deal.
But letting your 3-year-old who has a life-threatening condition stay overnight without you is almost unfathomable.
We had been recommended to do this. We hadn’t had a break in years and finding people that would take Matthew’s complications and needs in their stride was completely foreign to us.
The Very Special Kids Hospice did that for us."
Meet our Physiotherapist
Last year Very Special Kids secured a funding grant from the Barr Family Foundation that meant we were able to hire a permanent part-time physiotherapist.
Physiotherapists work to improve children’s motor development, strength, range of motion, fitness, gait difficulties, balance, coordination and respiratory function.
Belinda Luther, is now at our hospice 5 days a week, every morning, and has extensive experience in the paediatric physiotherapy industry.
Upcoming Events
North West Family Day
Glen Osmond Farm
Saturday 24 March, 11am - 2.30pm
Gippsland Pamper Day
49 – 63 Princess Street, Traralgon
Friday 16 March, 10am - 1pm
Bereaved Sibling Day
Very Special Kids, Malvern
Thursday 5 April, 10am - 2.30pm
Sibling Day
Very Special Kids, Malvern
Wednesday 11 April, 10am - 2.30pm
Coffee mornings
Want to know the dates and details of Metro Coffee Mornings for 2018? Download the flyer below.
Reminder - School holiday hospice bookings
Given the increase in challenges around hospice bookings during the school holiday program, advice was sought from the Family Advisory Committee around creating a new booking system based on need. Please read the below information.
To find out more information about the services we offer to families, please call the Duty Practitioner on (03) 9804 6222
