Royal Far West, in partnership with the Walgett Aboriginal Medical Service (WAMS) and Ronald McDonald House Charities, will again be delivering free child health checks in Walgett.
The award-winning Healthy Kids Bus Stop (HKBS) program will be in Walgett from 6-9 March inclusive and will be delivered alongside the WAMS Healthy for Life checks. The Bus Stop is targeted at 3-5 year olds and is an integrated ‘whole of child’ health and developmental assessment and pathway to care program. It aims to improve the health and wellbeing of children living in rural and remote communities through early detection of lifestyle risk factors, delayed development and/or illness.
This integrated ‘whole of child’ health assessment includes a child health check, hearing screening, dental check, fine and gross motor skill development screening, language and speech development check and a food nutrition check. The program also provides a pathway to care to ensure that children are given a referral pathway to receive the ongoing support they need. This includes working with local communities and linking families to relevant local services.
Royal Far West CEO, Lindsay Cane, said she was very excited that the organisation was able to bring this program to Walgett. “We are proud and appreciative of the support of our partners who have worked with us to make sure that children from Walgett and surrounding areas have access to this important and innovative program. As well as being a fun and interactive experience, these health assessments help to identify and support children with health and developmental needs that might otherwise go unnoticed.”
Royal Far West and the Walgett Aboriginal Medical Service have a formal Memorandum of Understanding, which commits them to working together on projects that improve the health and wellbeing of young people.
Christine Corby, CEO at Walgett Aboriginal Medical Service, said the organisation was proud to support the delivery of the ‘Bus Stop’. “We are delighted to be working with Royal Far West and partners to deliver the Bus Stop in our community. Part of our role is to support families by arranging transport to attend the Bust Stop and to provide follow up care. We want to make sure that as many families as possible from our region benefit from this program. There has been a really positive response to the service from our community and we are proud to be a part of it.”
Registrations are preferred for the Bus Stop and forms are available online by going to https://www.royalfarwest.org.au/healthy-kids-bus-stop, filling in the form and sending it back to nikd@royalfarwest.org.au
Call: 02 8966 8500 for more information.