News

MDAS services centralised with opening of new office

Fri, 13 Nov 2015 17:32:00

Mallee District Aboriginal Services says a $2.9 million redevelopment of its Mildura facilities is allowing it to continue improving services and helping to strengthen the local Koori community.

The redevelopment of the MDAS Administrative and Family Services area has centralised the organisation’s core operations and linked them more closely to the MDAS health building, opened in 2013.
This development has transferred MDAS’s main reception area into Tenth Street, created new and better client intake and consultation rooms for Family Services and created a new community hall with catering and training facilities.
The opening of the new building finally re-joins MDAS’s administrative operations and service delivery areas onto the one location, which has been a long-term goal for the organisation.
Staff are being moved into the new building in stages, and the completion of the project is being celebrated with a community day today.
MDAS chairman Keith Hampton said the redevelopment provided a much-needed improvement to internal areas.
“Some of the public and service delivery areas, such as the community hall, had not been touched in more than 20 years, so they were in urgent need of upgrading,” Mr Hampton said.
“The project has drawn together all of the MDAS Mildura services and creates a community hub, including an outdoors area around the Lower Murray Water tower that the whole community can use and will appreciate,” he said.
Mr Hampton said the more functional Family Services and Administrative areas would allow the organisation to continue its efforts aimed at closing the gap on health and wellbeing for Aboriginal people.
“We know that to do the job that’s in front of us, we need tools that meet the demand and the need of the community for culturally-appropriate services,” Mr Hampton said.
“When we provide quality facilities, people feel more confident in coming here and it’s easier to recruit the best-possible staff to help our work,” he said.
“Our new Mildura Health Service opened in October 2013 and people are voting with their feet.  Across the organisation last year MDAS Health provided more than 28,000 health consultations - that’s 500 a week.
“Our work is clearly hitting the mark, with the number of Aboriginal Health Checks we are doing on men, women and children up 40 percent last year.
“It matters that our people can do their business in pleasant, friendly and efficient surroundings, and that’s why the opening of the new MDAS Administration and Family Services building is so important.
“It brings the same pleasant and professional surroundings Family Services and Administrative functions that we already in place for health, and that has a real effect on the morale of staff and clients alike.”
Mr Hampton said it was also appropriate to reflect that MDAS and its precursor organisations had been delivering services to the Mallee community for more than 30 years.
“We had humble beginnings, but we have grown into an Aboriginal Community Controlled Organisation that is now a national leader and innovator in providing services to community,” he said.
“The developments we are opening today and the new health building opened in 2013 are the biggest investment in that 30-year history in the future of Mallee Aboriginal communities.
“We are proud of what we have done so far and we thank everyone who has been part of bringing this latest development to reality. 
“We know and welcome everyone to get on board and be part of building ‘vibrant, healthy and strong Aboriginal communities’ for the future.”