When the mid-Canterbury town of Rakaia was faced with the threat of losing its only doctor a small group of volunteers banded together to fight off the threat.  Six years on the Rakaia Medical Centre Trust has not only saved Rakaia’s medical services, it has improved them.

The Rakaia Medical Centre was a privately owned sole practice surgery.  When the doctor stopped practicing in March 2004 she was only willing to ‘sell’ the practice to a community-based organisation.  It was this dilemma facing the community that resulted in the establishment of the Rakaia Medical Centre Trust, which was formed to govern and maintain a medical surgery which would provide effective, affordable and quality medical services to the Rakaia district. 

The Trust successfully kept the practice running, with the help of a series of locum GPs, for the 12 months it took to recruit the services of a long-term, permanent doctor to the practice.  Attracting a doctor to Rakaia was a community effort – the Trust assisted by the Rakaia Lions, offered the doctor a car as part of the package. The local mechanic offered to service it for free and  housing was also sourced.   Funding for the Trust came from local charitable organisations, the Canterbury DHB, the PHO and the Ashburton District Council.

In January 2005 Rakaia’s new doctor started work.   After one year of trading as a medical centre the Trust’s primary source of funding came from the PHO and fees charged to patients (which are kept to a minimum).

It was for this tremendous effort that the Rakaia Medical Centre Trust won the Supreme Award at the 2006 TrustPower Ashburton Community Awards.  The Trust then went on to represent the district at the TrustPower National Community Awards.

Trust chairperson Sylvia Mellish says at the Trust Power National Community Awards they were blown away at the amount of work communities do around the country.

“It gave us the incentive to carry on and do more,” says Sylvia Mellish.

And that is exactly what they have done….

In November 2008 two new doctors started at the Rakaia Medical Centre, John Marc de Maroussem and Samanthi Rambadagalla (their first doctor by this time had moved to other challenges).  Just as these two new docs got their feet settled under their desks, major renovations started at the Centre.

Those renovations have just finished and as a result the Centre has doubled in size (thanks to funding from the Ashburton District Council and lots of community fundraising) and is now home to more than just your traditional GP.  Working from rented rooms at the Medical Centre are many other medical professionals, including a physiotherapist, chiropractor, dietician and diabetes nurse.  Prior to the Centre being available many of these services were not accessible in Rakaia.

“Nowadays sometimes it’s so busy at the Centre that it’s hard to fit everyone in,” says Sylvia.

The Centre now has more than 2,000 patients and has a huge amount of community support.

“The community has been willing to accept and adapted well to change and has given us the go ahead to do the job.  The community has put their Trust in us,” says Sylvia.

The Rakaia Medical Centre Trust has also set up a transport service to provide Rakaia locals with transport to hospital appointments.  This service is run by the Trust but is supported by around 30 volunteers.

The Trustees are now also answering questions from other communities around the country who are looking to establish similar organisations. 

“The main issue people ask about is governance and management.  This is one of the biggest issues groups like us face.  We know where our board role stops and where management starts, and that and of course our wonderful staff, is one of our biggest assets,” says Sylvia.

Sylvia says being involved in the TrustPower Community Awards opened their eyes to what is going on around the country.  Indeed it seems that the Community Awards also opened the country’s eyes to what is going on in Rakaia!

For more information on the Rakaia Medical Centre Trust please contact Syliva Mellish on 03 302 7128 or email sylvia.mellish@clear.net.nz .