News

Kareena wins National APHA Award

Nov 01, 2009

Kareena Private Hospital in Sutherland Shire has taken out the Peak Private Hospital Industry Award for Community Involvement at the 2009 Australian Private Hospitals Association (APHA) Awards held in Melbourne this week.

The Award recognises hospitals which have excelled in the area of community involvement.

Kareena Private, a 128 bed hospital owned by Ramsay Health Care, won the award for its active engagement with staff and the local Sutherland Shire community through a range of events and activities such as its wellbeing and balance program.

Kareena Private Hospital CEO Tim Daniel said the hospital was committed to the provision of health, health promotion and wellbeing to the communities within the southern Sydney area and beyond.

“Our hospital staff support health and wellbeing initiatives through awareness campaigns, screening and education programs for members of our community for the prevention and early detection of diseases that affect Australians,” Tim said.

“Kareena’s strategic plans have a community strategy, which extends to involve the community through the provision of exceptional heatlh care and the social and corporate responsibility to care for the community which it serves. As part of this strategy, Kareena has achieved “Health Promotion Hospital” status with the World Health Organisation.”

Community involvement activities at Kareena include Seniors Week, Health weeks, a volunteer program, patient focus groups, hospital open days, fundraising events for selected charities each year, inhouse education programs for local general practitioners and ambulance officers and interaction with the local Rotary association.

At Christmas, the hospital adopts a local aged care facility and the hospital staff make donations towards this facility which is presented at a Christmas celebration.

As an active participant in the community Kareena has also established an effective volunteer program that provides a fulfilling and rewarding experience for the volunteer team of 14 dedicated members. Past patients from the hospital are also invited to focus groups to provide feedback on the hospital’s performance and to help identify strengths and to clarify community expectations of the hospital and its service to the community.

This APHA award is a further notch for Kareena Private Hospital which won the Australian HR Awards last year.