Families of sick kids from Bundaberg and Burnett will be able to closer to their son, daughter, brother or sister after the construction of the world’s largest Ronald McDonald House.
The Queensland Government has gifted Ronald McDonald House Charities a block of land to provide family accommodation for the Lady Cilento Children’s Hospital precinct in South Brisbane.
When it opens in 2016 the new House will have the capacity to accommodate more than 450 people a night, more than double the existing facility, making it the largest Ronald McDonald House in the world.
When you’re a child receiving inpatient care, often for long periods of time, one of the scariest things about a stay in hospital is being separated from your family.
For any parent, but especially those from out of town, it is heart-wrenching to have to leave your child’s bedside and make that long journey back home. That’s where Ronald McDonald House steps in as a ‘home away from home’ for regional families with seriously ill children being treated in hospital.
The Queensland government had a strong plan for a brighter future and this includes vital community initiatives like providing land to enable the building of a new Ronald McDonald House.
The Lady Cilento Children’s Hospital will be the centre of a network of care for children from all over Queensland, supporting and strengthening paediatric services in Queensland.
The new hospital precinct will ensure that our sick children get world-class health care and treatment and their recovery will hopefully be accelerated by having their families close to them in Ronald McDonald House.
Ronald McDonald House South East Queensland Board Chairman Adam Dando has said the gift of land for the new South Brisbane House is a powerful testament to the strong relationship that exists between our organisation and the Department of Health.
“This will have an extraordinary benefit for families of seriously ill children and I thank the Queensland Government for their vision in partnering with us to deliver the world’s largest Ronald McDonald House,” Mr Dando said.
Ronald McDonald House will cost $35 million to build. RMH South East Queensland has pledged $15 million to the project. A campaign is underway to raise the required $20 million with another $5 million recently secured as a lead gift.
There are currently 14 Ronald McDonald Houses in Australia, two of which are in Brisbane – one at Herston and the other in South Brisbane (Mater) – and both will continue to operate until the new house at South Brisbane opens.
Between the two Brisbane Houses, the charity provides almost 23,000 room nights to seriously ill children and their families each year.
Construction should begin later this year (September/October) with the facility expected to take 14 months to open in March 2016.