ABC Radio Western Plains with Dugald Saunders
E&OE
SAUNDERS:
As you may have heard, a group of politicians arrived in Dubbo yesterday on the local leg of the Pollie Pedal. It started off at Moree a couple of days ago, it’s heading down to Penrith and as I mentioned, about 50 cyclists taking part, along with support crews and while they’re in Dubbo, there’s been a number of formal events to attend. Part of the support crew has been the Assistant Minister for Social Services, Senator Mitch Fifield, and he’s in here with us this morning, good morning to you.
FIFIELD:
Great to be with you Dugald.
SAUNDERS:
No Lycra for you?
FIFIELD:
No – look you’ve got to know your limitations! I know mine. So while my parliamentary colleagues are putting their bodies on the line for the Pollie Pedal and raising money for Carers Australia, I’m getting out and meeting carer groups, disability organisations and organisations like Dubbo Meals on Wheels, who support older Australians.
SAUNDERS:
And that’s part of what you did yesterday – meet up with local Meals on Wheels volunteers, and we’ll talk to Peter English as part of this shortly as well. But what was yesterday about with Meals on Wheels?
FIFIELD:
It was about, really more than anything, paying tribute to the incredible volunteers who make Meals on Wheels possible. I think there are 130 people who volunteer at Dubbo Meals on Wheels, there’s also an important contribution by local businesses who give their time and services for free to Dubbo Meals on Wheels. So the first and most important thing was to acknowledge those volunteers.
With Peter English, we handed some awards to long serving volunteers. But we’re also opening some new facilities that Dubbo Meals on Wheels have – a new, incredibly impressive freezer, and also a freezer van and a vehicle to transport people. So, some new resources to better help Meals on Wheels do their good work.
SAUNDERS:
Peter English is the service manager for Meals on Wheels here in Dubbo, morning to you Peter.
ENGLISH:
Morning Dugs, how are you.
SAUNDERS:
Very well. This is obviously a nice sort of announcement to be able to make and have the Minister and Assistant Minister here for Meals on Wheels yesterday. What are you actually doing that’s different?
ENGLISH:
Well we’ve been operating for 50 years in Dubbo and delivering wonderful nutritious meals to our clients for that period of time. And the NSW Meals on Wheels Association have adopted a logo about three years ago – ‘more than just a meal’ – and with our funding and our expectations, we have to make sure that the client has an experience with the meal. So when the volunteers go to see the client and deliver the meal, it’s about the rapport that’s been built up with the client.
And we’ve been able to gain additional resources because of the Minister’s last round in the HACC funding to be able to expand our resources and help our clients a lot more. So we’re able to give them what’s called social support, so that we can help them with outings. And we’ve got also transport ability to be able to transport them to particular outings and make them independent. And that’s the issue now – the old, the aged in our community, they’re locked in their homes and sometimes they’re alienated from society because of their family aren’t around or transport issues. So we’re hoping to make their life a little bit more enjoyable while they’re in their own home.
SAUNDERS:
Yeah, and obviously, part of the way of doing that is through some funding that’s been gained. Mitch Fifield mentioned a new freezer. It sounds fairly simple doesn’t it, but what difference does that make?
ENGLISH:
Well not only do we supply meals for the Dubbo clients, we’re also a large distribution centre for virtually Western NSW, from Wilcannia right up to Bourke and Lightning Ridge and down to Lake Cargelligo. That’s the area that we support the smaller meals on wheels services so they don’t have to spend huge infrastructure in their freezers. They’ve just got domestic freezers and they send in orders every week.
And as the Minister was alluding to, we have several businesses that support our endeavours by transporting the frozen product from Dubbo to all those centres in Western NSW free of charge as part of their community obligation. And yesterday was a part of recognising the contribution that local businesses do for us.
SAUNDERS:
It’s a massive effort isn’t it, to get the meals from a central point out every week to smaller localities. And Mitch Fifield from a Government point of view, the support you can provide is, as much as you can, obviously, but this is more than just about money, it is also community service that people are giving back to these sort of organisations.
FIFIELD:
Oh, look, absolutely. And this is about the best possible bang for taxpayer buck that you can get, because there’s an incredible volunteer contribution, it’s a contribution that Government couldn’t hope to replicate. But as Peter said, Meals on Wheels is far more than about providing good meals for older Australians who need a bit of a helping hand. So much of it is about the social contact, that daily contact with people and Meals on Wheels are doing more than just providing that daily contact. It’s an important part of the lives of many older Australians and it’s just a great example of Government, volunteers and businesses coming together to help improve the quality of life of other Australians.
SAUNDERS:
Peter you’ve been in the role now of Service Manager for a couple of years and I guess, as you said, Meals on Wheels has changed, it’s evolved as it has had to in modern time. What’s now looking like and what’s the future looking like in terms of where the organisation is going?
ENGLISH:
Well locally, Meals on Wheels Dubbo is trying to consolidate what we’ve been given recently with the additional resources and the additional programs and I think my board is very happy to consolidate and build on that. Because if you grow too quickly, you take your eye off the ball and our eye is on the clients that we service and that’s our end game.
SAUNDERS:
Meals, I believe, are slightly changing as far the provider of meals into the future, how’s that working?
ENGLISH:
Well yes, for the Dubbo clients, we have had a 14 year association with the Dubbo RSL Aged Care Association providing hot meals. And as of September 1, we will moving provider to the Lourdes Hospital, who, incidentally were the provider when Meals on Wheels started 50 years ago for hot meals. So we’ve had a wonderful association with the Orana Gardens Board and staff, and the contract has finished and by mutual agreement, we’ve decided to move on. And we’re very fortunate to have found Lourdes Hospital.
SAUNDERS:
How good are the meals?
ENGLISH:
I have the meals quite regularly and yes, they’re great meals. They’re probably a little bit on the blander side for you and I, because a lot of our clients have issues with diet and intestinal problems and obviously we have to respect that and in some respects dull the taste…
SAUNDERS:
It’s plain food you need to provide.
ENGLISH:
Well it’s wholesome food and most of it is gluten free and we have to be sure that it has the proper nutritional balance for the aged population. Some of the products that you get from the generic supermarkets, there’s a lot of salt and fats that the older generation cannot consume. They need the nutrient, not the add-ons.
SAUNDERS:
From your point of view Senator, obviously nice to connect with the community and nice to be able to be here for some good announcements around such an important organisation?
FIFIELD:
Absolutely. And that’s one of the great benefits of the Pollie Pedal, which is 17 years old now. Members of Parliament cycling a thousand kilometres through regional Australia. It gives Members of Parliament the opportunity to spend some time in small and larger centres that they mightn’t otherwise be visiting. And for me, as the Minister for disabilities and ageing, it’s a great opportunity to spend time with organisations which have usually been founded by the local community who do incredible work — yes, with some Government support – but boy, I tell you, it’s so impressive how local communities rally around, raise money and support their local organisations.
SAUNDERS:
I appreciate your time this morning, thanks for coming in.
FIFIELD:
Thanks indeed.
SAUNDERS:
Senator Mitch Fifield and Peter English from Meals on Wheels, continued good work and nice to hear there’s a bit of new equipment.
ENGLISH:
Great, thanks very much Dug for your time.
SAUNDERS:
Thanks for your time, Peter English and Mitch Fifield joining us this morning.