Issue

Message from CEO
Message from CEO
Issue 01 / 2011
Wintalyka
Les MacDonald
I
have drawn attention on previous
occasions to the work we at the
Association are doing to ensure
that our voice is being heard
at a national level in the making of
the decisions around the transfer of
responsibilities between the State and
Federal Governments concerning the
HACC and Disability sectors.
Much of our attention to date has been on the
HACC sector as that is the funding source for
much of the existing and past responsibilities of
our local services. That will continue to be the
case for some time, but in the end we will need
to also focus on the Disability sector and how
that will affect our membership.
In the meantime we have been working out a
strategy that I have attempted to explain in our
more recent rounds of Board Only consultations
and in the current round of Regional
Conferences. The strategy in essence is a twolevel
one that seeks to ensure that our message
about the importance of HACC services to the
communities that they serve is communicated
effectively and that governments must be
careful to ensure that any changes being made
to funding sources and oversight mechanisms
must be carefully calibrated to ensure that they
do not impact negatively on the ability of our
local community based organisations to serve
the needs of the vulnerable people that are our
reasons for existence.
It is a common-place of organisational life
today that communication is the key problem
area. In an era of vastly increased information
availability the need to have a message that
cuts through the babble of conversations going
on, and make a lasting impact is essential if we
are to have any effect on the policy formation
process. That means that relying on only one
means of communicating that information may
well leave you unable to make the connections
necessary. So we have adopted a two level
approach to better our chances of getting our
message through.
The first, and primary, level of communication
is from local services to their local communities
and to persons of influence in those
communities. Our assistance in creating the
Community Care Consortium, which is a
combination of all HACC peaks in NSW, and the
work that we are doing through that body, is the
foundational base for your ability to talk about
the issues that are important to us. The talking
points that we have begun, and incidentally
the second one is due out very soon, are being
provided to all HACC services throughout NSW,
and can be used by you to promote the cause of
HACC services within your community.
We are also driving a similar process at a
National Meals on Wheels level with talking
points that are specific to Meals on Wheels. You
will have seen the first two of those in recent
days.
The second level of attack on these issues
is being carried out by the Association, in
co-operation with the other members of
the Community Care Consortium (a group
composed of all the HACC state peaks),
and is aimed at directly lobbying both the
current Federal Government, the Greens, the
Independents and the Opposition. Our view
is that the message to the Parliament is best
communicated at these two levels.
You can be assured that the Association is
deeply involved in sectoral activities designed
to ensure that whatever changes do occur over
the next few years that the voice of Meals On
Wheels, and of the HACC sector generally, is
heard and listened to.
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www.nswmealsonwheels.org.au