Issue 9 | 20 December 2022 

A very Merry Christmas and holiday season to everyone, and welcome to the final Calvary Kooyong community newsletter for 2022.

And what a year it has been. This time last year the building structures had not long been completed and internal fit-outs had begun. Now, we have reached practical completion of the project and, thanks to the labours, expertise and effort of so very many people on site and behind the scenes, Calvary Kooyong is a reality.

Staff are starting to occupy the site, Calvary Bethlehem will be moving home soon, and our first residents are getting ready to move in.

Calvary Kooyong opening for business

Calvary Kooyong is Calvary’s landmark integrated precinct, bringing together premium retirement living in the Hyson Apartments, contemporary residential care in the Huntly Suites, Calvary Bethlehem’s existing specialist health services, Calvary’s in-home care, GP services and other health care.

From January 2023, Calvary Kooyong will be open for business.

Calvary Bethlehem hospital is moving home to its original site on Kooyong Road, with some staff and support services relocating from their temporary facilities at Parkdale from 4 January. Patients and remaining staff will progressively move in from 10 January. Local residents can expect to see ambulances and patient transport vehicles in the area during the carefully planned relocation, which is likely to take about a week. Patient services at both sites will run concurrently until the transfer of patients is complete.

Tours of the Huntly Suites residential aged care home begin in earnest next month, with the first residents due to move in from 23 January.

Residents of the Hyson retirement living apartments will move in progressively from 27 January.

How to contact the Kooyong Precinct

From next month, the precinct will also have a new number.

Whether its for Calvary Bethlehem’s specialist health services or Huntly Suites residential aged care the telephone number to call is 03 9834 9000.

General enquiries for Hyson Apartments can also be made via the central 9834 9000 number. For sales enquiries however, please contact Sales Manager Christopher Wilson on mobile 0460 320 111 or via email @ christopher@hysonapartments.com.au

The central number will feature self service menu so that callers can navigate themselves to the specific service needed  – or stay on the line and a receptionist will answer their call.

Other details to note:

• The main entrance for Calvary Kooyong is off Saturn Street. Visitors to Calvary Bethlehem, Huntly Suites and Hyson Apartments will be able to access any of the services from inside the entrance foyer, and friendly reception staff or volunteer community guides will be on hand to direct or assist you.
• The public garden space, St Michael’s Grove, is accessible from Kooyong Road and is open to the community as well as being available for residents and their visitors. The garden will be locked during the evening.
• The official postal address for the Calvary Kooyong precinct, and for the individual services, is 476 Kooyong Road, Caulfield South 3162.

Staff orientation in full swing 

It continues to be a busy time for existing Calvary staff in the lead up to Christmas.

Delivery elves are dropping off lots of furniture so rooms and spaces in the health services building and aged care home can be fully fitted out, and all Calvary Bethlehem staff and new precinct staff are undergoing orientation to their new work site. 

The day-long orientation sessions include tours of the precinct buildings and services, so staff are able to familiarise themselves with what is located where. They are also doing fire training and other Work Health and Safety training.

The tours have included back-of-house services such as the kitchens and laundry services, as well as Calvary Bethlehem’s day centre, allied health hubs, gym, inpatient ward (St Teresa’s), outpatient clinics, education space, assistive technology room, new music therapy recording room, administration areas, and the Jacaranda room and associated garden, where patients and family members can spend time away from their hospital room.

Locals step up to volunteer at the new precinct

“We had almost 20 new volunteers sign on, which is just fantastic. Most are from the local area and have watched and read with interest as the buildings took shape and the precinct developed,” Lindy said.

“People have been really enthusiastic to be a part of the new precinct. Many have had a previous experience with the old hospital – they were excited about Bethlehem coming home and this was an opportunity to give back.”

“Most of the newcomers will initially be volunteer guides to help visitors find their way around the site when it opens in January. There’s an opportunity for them too to be a part of different volunteering programs in the future, whether in assisting within Calvary Bethlehem or in the Huntly Suites aged care home, or even with the services we provide in the community.

“Some (like Sophia, above) have already started their volunteering, supporting staff and contractors with the transition to the new site, or staffing the font reception desk to take deliveries and sign people in.”

If you would like to find out about volunteer opportunities at Calvary Kooyong and Calvary Bethlehem, give Linda a call in the new year on 9834 9000 or drop her a line at Linda.Shaw@calvarycare.org.au

Aged care, but not as you know it

Interest in the Huntly Suites residential aged care home has been strong with many people booking in for tours in a matter of weeks since bookings opened.

The first residents are expected to move in from 23 January and the home will open one section at a time as numbers build, home manager Carol Hamilton said.

The contemporary 83-bed home is built across three levels with dining rooms on each floor and multiple common areas throughout to cater for casual catch-ups with family and friends, watching television, or reading.

Residents’ rooms are all single rooms with their own ensuites, and many have balconies.

There is a large designated room for lifestyle and large group activities. A private dining room is available so that residents can celebrate special occasions with visitors or arrange for a family dinner – families can either cater themselves or have the meal or event catered through the home.

Tea and coffee-making areas are scattered through the home so that residents can help themselves, and the home’s serveries are designed so that residents can help with cooking and food preparation if they wish.

Each different level of the home has a specific colour scheme and theme, and have been named after local suburbs.

The top floor is Gardenvale, and is the point of entry for the suites via the main entrance. It has terracotta colours and incorporates iconic Melbourne images, such as city views and black swans at Albert Park.

Caulfield is the next floor down, and is painted in green hues and themed around gardens, flowers and yes, horses.

The bottom floor of the home has a blue colour scheme which lends itself to a coastal theme in the interior design and furnishings. There are two areas on this level: Elsternwick provides general aged care, while Brighton is a specialist 16-bed memory support unit catering for people living with dementia and incorporates a large courtyard garden.

“It’s aged care but not as you know it,” says Carol. “We’re about person-centred care, and the structure of the home will be built around how the residents choose to live their lives and around their preferences and needs.”

To find out more, register your interest or book a tour, call Calvary Assist on 1800 52 72 72. You can also contact Carol directly to book a tour, either at carol.hamilton@calvarycare.org.au or phone 9834 9000.

Hyson Apartments sales office moves on site

With the precinct set to open, so too a new Hyson Apartments display suite and sales office is set to open at the Calvary Kooyong precinct.

The display suite on Glen Huntly Road has now closed and has been relocated to Calvary Kooyong – along with Sales Manager Christopher Wilson.

From the new year, contact Christopher on mobile 0460 320 111 or email christopher@hysonapartments.com.au to arrange a private inspection of the completed community.  The inspection includes tours of the apartments and the shared spaces including the sky terrace, cinema and wine library.

Meet the retirement living manager

Delia Gawthorne has been a Cruise Director onboard a luxury international cruise line, managed a retirement village in nearby Brighton, and also ran lifestyle and wellbeing programs in aged care.

Throw experience as a corporate tax accountant with a Bachelor of Commerce degree into the mix, and it’s clear Delia’s sound business acumen, diverse background and experience, and can-do approach make her a great fit for her new role of Retirement Manager at Calvary Kooyong.

Delia has started in the role of managing the Hyson retirement living apartments and says she is excited by the opportunity, which brings all the elements of her past experience together for the benefit of Hyson Apartment residents and for Calvary Kooyong.

“Calvary Kooyong itself is a really exciting project,” Delia said. “It’s not just one thing or another, it is many things all integrated together in one precinct that is designed to help its many and varied residents to live well and to meet their changing lifestyle and health needs.”

“I’m really looking forward to getting to know the residents – those who have already purchased and those who are yet to come aboard – and to work with them to facilitate activities or events that they are interested in and help build our new Calvary Kooyong community.

“Together we can.”