Forbes Medicine & Mind is a multi-disciplinary family practice in Forbes that was Opened in 2018 after a full and complete refurbishment of the 12 Cross st address to transform it into a medical practice. 

Managing Director Courtney Hodges said “After 12 months of trading, COVID-19 hit. We went straight into COVID then for three years and we pretty much came up for air and then Forbes flooded”. 

During the November 2022 floods the practice had water enter the property and rise 40cm inside, just enough to ruin everything, electrical, cabling, floors, All the gyprock needed to come out, so the building was going to need a full repaint. 

“We had literally fully refurbished this place in 2018, spent several hundreds of thousands of dollars fitting it out, for it to all need to be redone four years later. It was a massive blow and displaced us for six months, during that time we operated from the Boys to the Bush building here. They were really generous and had some rooms available that they let us move into while we renovated” said Courtney. 

Dr Richard Draper was recently awarded the RACGP GP of the Year award. The award is great as it recognises Dr Draper’s contribution to the local community during the floods, but Courtney says “for us it’s bigger than that, Richard is a born and bred, Parkes local, he has practiced for 30 years in the Central West as a solo practitioner, he is so dedicated to his community that he worked from his kitchen bench during the floods”. Richard is hoping to use the recognition from the award to “shine a light on the massive blind spot that our government has around primary care, because general practitioners are funded by the federal government, but natural disasters are state funded, so for GP’s there has been no support” , said Courtney. 

“We are in a rural community where we can’t attract doctors to our town, the doctors that are here are really on the edge of burnout, and we’ve had to pull money out of our Superannuations so that we can rebuild and go again, so that we can deliver a community service, because we are a private organisation, there was/is no support” 

So far the practice has only been able to access the same $50,000 business grant that was available to all other businesses affected during the flood, but shockingly, no further support. Dr Draper said “I basically pumped my retirement into rebuilding this place. I’d really love for the government to realise that we are an essential service to Forbes and put my super back, and Courtney’s super too”. 

Dr Draper had no idea he had been nominated for the GP of the Year award and said he was “Genuinely stunned”, and is hoping in the next 12 months to use his recognition as GP of the Year recipient to say “this is not good enough”. 

 

 

 

This is a moment of reflection for Australia.

While the referendum result is not the one Beyond Blue had hoped for, we remain hopeful that all Australians want to heal divisions and create a better future together.

First Nations peoples are nearly three times more likely to be psychologically distressed than other Australians, and twice as likely to die by suicide. Racism and exclusion harm mental health and wellbeing.

As the national depression and anxiety initiative, Beyond Blue is guided by evidence. For First Nations peoples, the research clearly shows that social and emotional wellbeing is strengthened when self-determination is at the heart of decision-making. That’s why we supported the Voice and believe a First Nations community-led approach to mental health will lead to better outcomes.

The referendum result will be distressing, particularly for many First Nations peoples.

We want to reassure everyone that Beyond Blue is available with free, immediate mental health advice and support for everyone. However you voted, whatever your views, Beyond Blue is here for you. Crisis support from First Nations counsellors is available from 13 YARN.

As we emerge from this chapter in our nation’s story, we must maintain hope that a better future is possible. That this was not our only chance at healing.

Beyond Blue will not waiver in our advocacy and our support for better mental health for First Nations peoples, standing proudly as allies in the ongoing pursuit of equality, inclusion and reconciliation.

We remain committed to the Uluru Statement from the Heart and open to its generous and dignified invitation to walk with First Nations peoples towards a better future.

An estimated 69 thousand new cases of cancer will be diagnosed in Australian women each year, and almost 20 thousand are diagnosed with breast cancer, the most common cancer impacting females across the country. 

Flannery’s Pharmacy Forbes will be shining a spotlight on these staggering statistics this October, as the store turns pink to raise funds, and awareness, for women’s cancers. 

Proceeds will go towards the National Breast Cancer Foundation, the McGrath Foundation, and the Cancer Council. 

Throughout October, there will be a range of events the community can support, including: 

Treats for Teats (October 17) the team will be hosting a huge bake sale for customers and surrounding businesses. 

Sausage Sizzle (October 24) swing by the store for a lunchtime sausage sandwich and show your support for Pinktober. 

Ladies Night (Thursday, October 26) the team will host a panel featuring an LPG pharmacist, physiotherapist, naturopath, and doctor in an event designed to provide women with a chance to ask all female-health related questions. There will also be giveaways, raffles, drinks, and nibbles. 

“We want the women in the Forbes district to feel supported and know they have services, and experts available, in their local community, every day, not just throughout the month of October. 

“If you’re wandering past Flannery’s Pharmacy over the coming weeks, come in and have a chat, don’t be afraid to ask questions. We’re here to help. And if you just want to offer a dollar or two for support, we’d love that as well” Pharmacist, Tracey Edwards, said. 

All Pinktober events will be held at Flannery’s Pharmacy, 99-101 Rankin Street, Forbes, NSW. 

Australian farmers are seeking mental health support at almost twice the rate they were seeking assistance last year, according to trusted rural charity, Rural Aid. 

In the past two months, Rural Aid counsellors have conducted 277 counselling sessions, a 95 per cent increase compared to the same period last year. 

Rural Aid’s counselling helpline is currently fielding an average of 13 calls each day from primary producers. 

Rural Aid’s Manager of Mental Health and Wellbeing, Myf Pitcher, said the range of topics that farmers are worried about has also recently widened. 

“Our farmers have moved from states of stress to states of desperation,” Myf said. 

Sheep and cattle farmer Ron Dooley said the Rural Aid counselling service helped him get through a difficult time after the Black Summer bushfires. 

“I had a bit of a mishap when I was fighting the front of the fire. I couldn’t see where I was going and I ran into a dam wall and stalled the tractor with the flames coming through the bottom of the tractor,” Ron said. 

“After talking with Darren from Rural Aid, he [helped me to make] some decisions on what to do when feeling like that, and it did help,” Ron said. 

Rural Aid counsellors catch up with their farmers where they’re most comfortable; whether it’s on farm, in town, or over the phone. 

Contact Rural Aid’s counselling intake line on 1300 175 594.

October 1 marked the start of Breast Cancer Awareness Month and at Breast Cancer Network Australia (BCNA) the theme is “Living Well, Your Way”. With 20,458 women and 217 men expected to receive a diagnosis in 2023, raising awareness around the different support and resources available to help people live well with or beyond breast cancer is essential.

The theme recognises that many people struggle to ‘live well’ following a diagnosis of breast cancer and that a quality lifestyle looks different for different people.

“Living well looks different for everyone, and it is likely that people affected by breast cancer will require different types of support at different times,” said BCNA CEO Kirsten Pilatti. “It means seeing the whole person, rather than the disease.”

Throughout Breast Cancer Awareness Month, BCNA will share information about different resources available, across topics such as psychosocial support and exercise. They will also share personal stories from members about what helps them to live well.

BCNA offer trusted information and a variety of resources which can all be accessed via BCNA’s newly refreshed website at www.bcna.org.au.

Businesses, schools and organisations across Parkes are showing their support, and getting involved in Pink Up Parkes for the month of October to help raise money for the McGrath Foundation who support Breast Care nurses across Australia. 

At IGA in Parkes the Store Manager Steven Langlois is putting it all on the line to raise as much money as he can for the cause. Steven has set a fundraising target that they will donate to Pink Up Parkes, and once the target is raised he is committing to shave his head. So head on into IGA and support a great cause.