There is a crisis in Australian health care today, with the demise of the solo family doctor, too often inadequate communication and consultation between doctor and patient, a gulf between medical and “alternative” practitioners, the “corporatisation” of medical practice, and stressed and pressured doctors who are leaving the profession in increasing numbers. Those remaining often work in isolation, with little or no interaction with their peers.

In response to this crisis, we have created a new model for health care: a partnership between practitioner and patient, complemented by life education. This model aims to embrace the needs of the whole person - physical, emotional, psychological and spiritual.

OUR VISION:
At Invitation to Health (ITH) we provide integrated health care and life education in a beautiful and nourishing environment, for health practitioners, staff and patients alike. Our buildings are filled with colour and light, set in gardens designed around the shape of a Celtic Cross. There is a play area for children and a quiet room for those who need it.

We aim to work in partnership with our patients, approaching their illness from a physical, emotional, mental and spiritual (energetic) perspective. The different practitioners (each well qualified, experienced and accredited) enjoy equal status and respect for their expertise, supporting and learning from each other. Generally they function independently. However, when required, case conferences allow different practitioners to consult jointly with a patient, to create a complementary treatment plan.

We acknowledge that a frequent underlying reason for consulting a health practitioner is a sense of isolation and loneliness, and conversely, that disease can also be a cause of isolation and loneliness. In “The Shed”, we host a variety of educational courses, therapeutic groups and activities, to help our patients build their capacity to integrate into the community. We also provide regular morning teas where our patients can have contact with others and access our library and other information.

We strive to care for our planet by using energy-efficient principles in our buildings and tasks, for example, by running a “paperless” office. We are committed to “Best Practice”, through using the latest information technology, evidenced-based treatments as far as possible, and to ongoing assessment of treatment effectiveness and patient satisfaction. This research will be offered for publication in peer-reviewed journals. Our research focus is strengthened through links with relevant University departments.

OUR MISSION IS TO ENABLE OUR PATIENTS TO ACHIEVE PHYSICAL, MENTAL, EMOTIONAL AND SPIRITUAL WELLBEING BY:

• working in partnership with our patients,
• encouraging them to take responsibility for their own health;
• educating our patients in order to foster informed choice and self-care;
• utilising a team approach which encourages communication, mutual support, debriefing and case conferencing, allowing each practitioner’s skills to complement the others;
• using complementary treatments to augment conventional medical care in order to improve health outcomes and patient satisfaction;
• providing a safe, harmonious and loving environment in which people can regain hope and self-respect.
  

THE ITH TRUST AND ITS FOUNDERS.

The Trust

ITH was founded by six professionals who have known one another for more than ten years and who have a common vision for community health care – to bring together complementary therapies and primary medical care, thus providing an innovative and comprehensive service for which there is already a demonstrated public need. It operates as a fixed trust, which owns the property, employs the administrative staff and charges service fees to practitioners. The six founding members hold a majority of the units in the trust and the remaining units are held by overseas investors.

The Stories of some of our Founders

Dr PENNY CALDICOTT: General Practitioner
Bachelor of Medicine, Newcastle Uni., FRACGP (Fellow of the Royal College of General Practitioners), Forensic examiner for victims of sexual assault.

Penny’s Story:
I have worked as a General Practitioner on the Central Coast of NSW for the last 12 years. I studied medicine out of a sense of vocation rather than as a career option. From the start I knew that allopathic medicine was merely a beginning and I was sure that I would find a way to care for my patients that would address the human being in all its dimensions.

Over the last 12 years, both through my own personal evolution (including an 18 month course in emotionally focused counselling) and the privilege of working in partnership with my patients, I have developed a new understanding of disease process, as the interaction between the inextricably linked parts of the human being (physical, mental, emotional and spiritual). In the last ten years I have spent time with doctors and other therapists around the world (Russia, Canada, Mexico, France, New Zealand, and Germany) who are using new tools which address the deeper emotional and spiritual pain which can be the cause and/or consequence of disease. I have learnt to work with my patients at a level that enables them to begin to heal parts of themselves that have been hidden and protected. I have seen that disease processes can be transformed if the human is nourished and listened to on all levels.

I have seen that patient care in our community is fragmented, as different therapists not only work in isolation, communicating only rarely with each other, but there is also often a mutual distrust of each other, based on ignorance and fear. This situation obviously compromises patient care and is an added burden for the individual therapists, who often feel that they must somehow address their entire patient’s needs themselves. For these reasons, amongst many others, I have thought over the last ten years that we need to educate each other and create lines of communication between the different modalities of therapy. Now with Invitation to Health we aim to go further than that and create a centre in which we not only cohabit but work together, taking the pressure off the individual therapist, supporting each other in our areas of specialty and enhancing patient care.

Dr SUSAN BALLINGER: Clinical Psychologist
B.A. (hons), Macquarie Uni, Ph.D., Uni. Syd. Past National Chair, APS College of Clinical Psychologists. Clinical Lecturer, Dept. Psychology, Uni. Syd.
Approved Report Writer for Victims of Crime Tribunal .

Susan’s Story:
I have worked as a registered nurse in Adelaide, Sydney, London and with Canadian Indians in Montreal. When my youngest child began kindergarten, I enrolled to study psychology as a mature aged student. My PhD research was concerned with how the perception of stress can change people’s hormone levels and affect their health. I discovered that the more negative the perception, the more profound the imbalance became. Following my belief in the importance of working in partnership with patients and offering information so they can make informed decisions about their treatment, I have written a book for lay people about the interaction of life events, stress and symptoms in the menopause.

For ten years I taught Behavioural Sciences to medical students at the University of Sydney. This was largely about scientific method and also basic counselling and how to communicate effectively and respectfully with their patients. For the past thirteen years I have worked as a private practitioner, first in Sydney and then in Nowra where I have admitting rights to the local private hospital. My therapeutic methods are eclectic and intuitive. I believe that the primary healing force is love and my over-riding aim in therapy is to guide people towards loving themselves and others more fully. This is best achieved through respecting and communicating with patients as unique individuals, by therapists who themselves feel respected and nurtured.

BRENTON GRIMISON: Registered Specialist Nurse Practitioner RN, RM.

Brenton’s Story:
I completed my studies as a Registered General Nurse at the Gosford Hospital on the Central NSW Coast, and then moved to Brisbane to study Obstetric Nursing at the Mater Hospital. Since then, I have had 25 years nursing experience working in many different places and situations in Australia. During this time I undertook many short courses to enhance my knowledge and skills - in Cardiac Care, Counselling, Palliative Care, Grief and Bereavement, to mention a few.
Prior to joining the staff of ITH, I worked on the Central Coast for 5 years as a Community Health Nurse and then spent 4 years with the Department of Palliative Care as a Clinical Nurse Specialist, caring for the terminally ill in the community.

Before that, I worked in many States and Territories of Australia, from small rural towns to remote areas of Central and Tanami Deserts, large mining, farming, fishing townships and cities. This has provided me with invaluable professional skills and knowledge, as well as a wealth of life experience with many different cultures and ethnicities, especially Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders.

As a team member of our new medical centre, I am very excited and committed to providing a new way of dealing with disease, by welcoming, listening, respecting and touching people in some way, so that they can find peace and hope and healing in their lives.

ROSEMARY BLUNDO: Arts Educator.
Dip.Dram.Art., Sydney Acting School, Accredited Conference Interpreter.

Rosemary’s Story:
I was born in Morocco and came to Australia in 1970 at the age of 20, having lived in France for the previous five years, where I obtained my Baccalaureate in Antibes.
For the next eight years I worked with Air-France, as a bilingual Executive Secretary/Administrator for the South Pacific. During that time I perfected my language skills, became an accredited Conference Interpreter and travelled extensively.
In 1982 I completed a three-year Diploma of Dramatic Art, which led to a career in acting for theatre, television and film for the next seven years. During that time I became interested in Australian mythology and established links with the Aboriginal people of the Central Desert. In 1989 I moved to Yuendumu (NT), a settlement for the Warlpiri Aboriginal people and worked there as an assistant art co-ordinator for Warlukurlangu Artists until 1991.
Living in remote areas of the Northern Territory, I became aware of the need to be well informed and self-sufficient in terms of my own health. Later when our son was born and we also lived in a remote area of Victoria, this need was even more pressing. I used homeopathy, herbal therapy, aromatherapy and massage, and nutrition. I was fortunate enough to draw on the advice of therapists/doctors who had taken the time to educate me along the way.
This made me realise that the best thing a doctor/therapist can do for their patients is to educate them. The information, which I had received, had managed to sustain me and carry me in times of need and had turned out to be such an empowering gift.
Prior to 2004, I taught at the Central Coast Rudolf Steiner School for 7 years. This education is based on a curriculum which uses artistic expression as a vehicle for education and health.
I am now jointly responsible, with Teresa Connolly, for the development and management of the ITH education centre, “The Shed”. Our function is to present patients and community members with modalities, information and experiences, which will empower them to make informed choices for their health and their lives.

HANS LANG – Practice Manager
B.Ec., Uni. Syd. Ass. M. ASA., Ass. M. AAMFC., AAPM.

Hans’ Story:

I was born in Switzerland, lived there until age 8, then immigrated to Australia in 1965.
I graduated with an Economics Degree at the University of Sydney in 1977 and became an Associate member of the Australian Society of Accountants (now amalgamated).

My areas of work have included the role of auditor for a Chartered Accounting firm
(12 months); Assistant Manager for the Local Government Investment Service (5 yrs), Director of a small Travel Agency (6 months) and General Management of Telstra (formerly OTC) Credit Union (6 yrs General Manager, 4 yrs Assistant Manager).

Six years ago I changed my career path away from the financial services industry to the caring professions and became a Social Educator and Respite Care Support Worker for people with disabilities. I have worked in this capacity for the Department of Community Affairs (18 months), Mission Australia’s Hunter Region (2 yrs) and Coastlink’s Respite Care program as a supervisor for their weekend peer support program (2.5 yrs). Whilst working as a carer, I obtained a Certificate in Relationship Counselling in 1997. I completed 280hrs of face to face counseling in Neighborhood centers on the Central Coast and became an Associate member of the Australian Association of Marriage & Family Counsellors.

In 2003 I received a Certificate in Practice Management from the University of New England’s “Professional Practice Manager Development” program, specifically designed for application in Medical Centres. I am a current member of the Australian Association of Practice Managers.

In my role as practice manager of ITH, apart from overseeing the administration, legal and accounting functions, I am primarily the keeper of our vision. I aim towards achieving a certain synergy, by combining practitioner skills of different disciplines to achieve the best health outcome for our patients. I use my counselling and listening skills to smooth any interpersonal problems between practitioners and to connect individuals back to their core essentials.