Josee  My daughter has often needed emergency medical assistance, and the staff at Bellingen Hospital have just been fantastic! Even as a young adult, my daughter's health has been compromised by immune system dysfunction,

which is only now coming to light at the age of 20.

Josee  

Taking this hospital away from our community is basically saying that community health is not a priority. Not everyone has access to transport to Coffs Harbour Health Campus in the day or the middle of the night. Some people have a car, but not much petrol in it. I remember the days when I lived in Kalang, a single parent with no part time job, and I couldn't even afford the petrol to drive us to the beach on a hot day. 

So, how was I supposed to drive my daughter to Coffs Harbour for medical treatment in the middle of the night when, even if I was willing to spend my last $10 on petrol, there would be no petrol stations open anyway. Well, it is the same for parent of a child requiring medical assistance now, especially during emergencies. Our bodies don't just break down during the day, when there are buses running, etc. 

No-one wants ambulances to be tied up with non-emergency transport through the night, and a kid shouldn't suffer all night long, while her/his parents(s) worry themselves to death, because a facility which was already operating and in use, was closed down by management whose priority seems to be based on standard capitalist business practices, rather than a commitment to community health care.