A PLAN to sell Anglican Care's Bulahdelah's Cedar Wharf Lodge has angered community members who say it breaches an agreement made in good faith.
The facility is on the market, and critics say Anglican Care is not working collaboratively with the community towards a beneficial outcome.
It has also created an increasing sense of urgency to the community's calls for better access to health care services.
Great Lakes Nursing Home was opened as a not-for-profit aged care organisation in 1991.
It was built with money raised by the community and with the support of the Lindsay Ireland and his family who offered the family farm as security for the original development.
It was expanded over time to become a 57-bed nursing home for low-care and high-care residents, with six adjacent self-care units.
Community handover
In July 2017, land and improvements were transferred to Anglican Care for a dollar, together with liabilities of $1.171 million.
Mr Ireland's granddaughter, Megan Smith, says the arrangement came with an expectation of continued aged care service provision and community benefit.
Anglican Care closed Cedar Wharf Lodge in March, 2022, citing financial concerns, without consultation or a search for alternative service providers, Ms Smith says.
"Our community entered into this agreement in good faith, expecting sustained, long-term healthcare services," Ms Smith said.
"The unilateral closure and subsequent sale without community input or consideration for local needs is unacceptable.
Ms Smith said that, together with the Bulahdelah and District Health Action Group, she had met with Anglican Care Leadership and been in dialogue with Bishop Stuart but to no avail.
Multi-Purpose Service potential
Action group chair, Anne-Marie Barry, said there was strong community support and a well-developed business case for a Multi-Purpose Service in Bulahdelah.
"This facility would not only fill the void left by Cedar Wharf Lodge but also enhance healthcare accessibility and quality for many residents of the town," Ms Barry said.
An Anglican Care spokesperson confirmed that, as part of its property management processes, it had invited expressions of interest for the residential aged care facility site at Bulahdelah, which closed in May 2022.
"Anglican Care is not considering any other site proposals at this time," the spokesperson said.
"No further decisions have been made. Anglican Care does not expect to derive any profit from the sale after incurring significant debt when taking over the facility in 2017."
Ms Smith said she had received no update from Anglican Care after a meeting with leadership two weeks ago.
"They're behaving in a way that has total disregard to the needs of a rural community that doesn't honor the spirit of the arrangement." Ms Smith said.
"They have the option to make better decisions and they're choosing to put their head in the sand."
Put sale on-hold, says MP
David Gillespie, Federal MP for Lyne, who described Cedar Wharf Lodge as a very important piece of infrastructure, said he hoped Anglican Care could put any sale on ice and talk to the community.
"Anglican Care should take extra efforts to resolve it rather than just to achieve a sale," Mr Gillespie said,
"We are hoping that they will be prepared to moderate their plans. The community is hoping to get funding from the government to set up a multi-purpose health service.
"If there is government funding available to the entity that wants to take the building back, that might be the best settlement for Anglican Care, because who's going to buy it? It would be for land value only."
It was the perfect site for a MPS, Mr Gillespie said, but the initiative had to come first from Hunter New England Health to identify that site as a priority, then NSW Health, to apply for joint funding from the state and federal governments.
Health's perspective
A spokesperson for Hunter New England Health said NSW Health was continuing to work with the Australian Government and Bulahdelah District Health Action Group and was supportive of a future application for a Multi-Purpose Service in the region.
"NSW Health collaborates with the Australian Government in the development of the Multi-Purpose Service (MPS) program," the spokesperson said.
"The MPS program provides integrated health and aged care services to regional, rural and remote communities. There are 66 MPS across 8 local health districts (LHD) in NSW, including 12 in Hunter New England LHD."
