Carol Altmann – The Terrier

Tonight I want to answer a question that just keeps coming up: who owns Lyndoch Living?

The answer is the Warrnambool community.

In fact Lyndoch has been owned by the people of Warrnambool since day one, right back to the time when the “Lyndoch” property was secured by Ern Harris in 1952 and a public fundraiser was held to raise £13,000 toward the £40,000 price tag.

All of the land on which “Lyndoch” sits is also owned by Lyndoch Living, so the community owns that too.

This includes a slice of Scoborio Reserve that was portioned off by the Warrnambool City Council more than 20 years ago so Lyndoch could build the Tomlinson Centre for residents with dementia.

It’s the Tomlinson Centre that was recently bulldozed to make way for a planned $24 million medical clinic that is now at the centre of concerns that it could send Lyndoch broke.

In many ways, the Tomlinson Centre was what Lyndoch used to be all about.

The original building was funded through a generous donation from the Tomlinson family, and later extensions were paid for with the help of the A.L Lane Foundation, the Ray and Joyce Ubergang Foundation, the Ern Hartley Foundation and the Warrnambool Rotary Club.

That’s how Lyndoch used to work.

It used to work hand in glove with the community to raise funds to get things done, through raffles, Christmas parties and by simply asking for the public’s help.

In return, the community showed absolute loyalty to Lyndoch, especially when it was under threat of being merged or privatised, as it was in the 1990s.

The State and Federal governments fund various aspects of Lyndoch, but it is not government owned.

Nor is it privately owned.

Instead, Lyndoch sits in sweet spot of being community owned, but publicly funded.

This unique structure was tested in 1992, when the Labor Government tried to merge Lyndoch with the Warrnambool Base Hospital.

No bloody way, said the locals.

A strong, united, grassroots campaign led by then Lyndoch board members Drs Mike Page and Noel Bayley created multiple headlines and saw the idea wither.

As Peter Yule writes in his 2003 history of Lyndoch, the battle “brought home the value of Lyndoch as a unique community asset”.

This community ownership was tested again in the 1990s, when the Kennett Government planned to privatise all public aged care homes.

Lyndoch sought a legal opinion which confirmed, as Peter Yule writes, its unique legal status as “a community owned facility that provides public services”.

So let’s be clear – the community of Warrnambool owns Lyndoch.

It always has.

But so what?

As it stands, the community is shut off from any meaningful connection with Lyndoch and its decision makers.

We have lost that thread of accountability and mutual loyalty.

The board, which is now hand-picked by insiders, no longer answers questions issued by the media or individuals because, I guess, they dismiss all concerns as a beat-up.

In this new era, a former Acting Chief Financial Officer can raise the alarm over the viability of the $24 million medical clinic and it is met with silence.

This is incredible and, apparently, the new normal.

Gone are the days when we had a Dr Page or a Dr Bayley at the table, speaking up for the community and settling any concerns with straight forward answers.

Gone are the days of CEO Rhys Boyle, who lived in Warrnambool and became a recognisable part of its fabric.

Gone are the days of Lyndoch living within its means because now it doesn’t turn to the community, but to the banks.

Change happens – of course – but one of my biggest concerns when I first started to write about the changing face of Lyndoch Living 18 months ago was that the community would lose control of this valuable community asset.

It appears it already has.

Carol Altmann – The Terrier

Another member of the Lyndoch Living board has resigned – the second resignation from the board in two months.

Suzanne Coulson, a researcher and lecturer at Deakin University in the School of Nursing and Midwifery, joined the Lyndoch board in 2017.

I don’t know why Ms Coulson resigned, and I doubt she could speak to me anyway, as all board members are bound by a confidentiality agreement which was introduced after the departure of former CEO Rhys Boyle in 2015.

Ms Coulson’s resignation follows that of veteran board member Percy Eccles, who left in March after serving almost 10 years.

Ms Coulson was one of only two board members with medical qualifications. The other is fellow lecturer in the Deakin School of Nursing and Midwifery, Lorraine Mielnik.

The resignations of both Mr Eccles and Ms Coulson come as Lyndoch Living faces mounting pressure to explain a number of concerns around its plan to build a $24 million medical clinic on site, with fears the project could send Lyndoch broke.

Lyndoch’s former Acting Chief Financial Officer Allan Conway raised the red flag publicly when he said he did not support the clinic project in its current form.

Lyndoch recently appointed its third chief financial officer in five years, with the departures of David Knight and Katie Wright.

Other recent executive resignations include IT director Dr Ed Rhode and Director of People and Resilience Fiona Moore.

A community action group made up of Warrnambool residents concerned for the future of Lyndoch was launched last week – you can follow/like the “Keep Lyndoch living” group on Facebook here.

Carol Altmann – The Terrier

A grassroots action group has formed to challenge Lyndoch Living over plans to build a $22m medical clinic that some fear may send it broke.

I have written dozens of stories these past 18 months about concerns around Lyndoch Living and every time there is the same response from readers: what can we do?

Well here is the answer – you can support this action group.

The group – “Keep Lyndoch living” (follow them on their new Facebook page here) – is being led by local people who are prepared to speak up on behalf of the community, and you can stand with them.

The co-chairs are heavy hitters in Professor James Dunbar, who has had a long and distinguished career as a health researcher in Australia and overseas. He moved to south-west Victoria from the UK to become the first Director of the Greater Green Triangle University Department of Rural Health.

Prof Dunbar taught Clinical Governance and Risk Management for Flinders University in Adelaide, Singapore and China, and is an Honorary Professor with Deakin University.

The other co-chair is Jim Burke, a former naval officer and a senior investigator for the Inspector-General of Intelligence and Security until his retirement in 2009.

They are the public face of what they hope will be a united community voice seeking answers from Lyndoch on two broad questions:

how is the medical clinic being financed?

how will it benefit the residents of Lyndoch?

Last month, Lyndoch’s former Acting Chief Financial Officer Allan Conway revealed that, on the information available to him, he had formally advised Lyndoch CEO Doreen Power that he didn’t support the medical centre as proposed.

Mr Conway added that, as a private citizen, he also held fears for the viability of Lyndoch.

Despite this fire alarm from a former, well-respected CFO, the public response from the Lyndoch board has been silence.

In a media release today, Prof Dunbar said the community group had to move quickly, as construction was due to start on the clinic any day.

“If the medical centre resulted in serious financial issues for Lyndoch, the viability of Lyndoch could be threatened,” he said.

“As the community has funded and built Lyndoch over the past 70 years, it is imperative that the medical centre is based on a sound business plan and full transparency.”

Mr Burke said the group will seek a meeting with Lyndoch board.

In the interim, the group has contacted State Minister of Ageing Luke Donnellen, Federal Member Dan Tehan and State MPs Roma Britnell, Bev McArthur and Andy Meddick, to raise the following, specific concerns:

i. The cost of the centre;

ii. How the centre is to be funded;

iii. How loans and interest are to be repaid.  Borrowing would be at the current low interest rates, but this cannot be guaranteed in the future;

iv. Whether proper business modelling has been done for the clinic (including full business and operational plans), together with an associated risk management plan;

v. Details of prospective tenants.  Whilst an unknown number of GPs from The Health Spot and Warrnambool Medical Clinic have been secured, an advertisement in the Warrnambool Standard on 1 May, 2021 raises concerns about whether an adequate number of tenants in total can be secured where there are general GP shortages in rural areas;

vi. The effect of the Royal Commission into Aged Care and whether this could cause other financial pressures on Lyndoch.

To me, the launch of this group is significant, as I have learned that it’s incredibly difficult for people in Warrnambool to publicly question the decisions of those in authority.

People, I have learned, are often fearful to speak up individually.

Strength, however, lies in numbers and a unified voice.

Whether this group succeeds as a unified voice now hinges on how many people are prepared to stand alongside them as they speak up on behalf of the community.

If you want to stand with them, you can like/share/follow the “Keep Lyndoch living” Facebook page, which will provide updates to the community on its progress.

Carol Altmann – The Terrier

Yes, Lyndoch Living has a corporate tent at the May Races this year.

Yes, there is a gorgeous marquee decked out with stunning plants and there are goodie bags promoting the Waterfront Living apartments, because, well, how else could you possibly spend aged care funds in the wake of a Royal Commission into Aged Care?

On something meaningful and lasting? Sadly, no.

And why not have a corporate tent for three days at the races when there was a confirmed scabies outbreak in Lyndoch less than a week ago?

Far away from that itchy mess, the only scratching to be seen in the corporate tent is that on the form guide.

And why not spend aged care funds setting up a corporate tent when Lyndoch has recorded a string of deficits these past five years?

The estimated cost of the tent and catering is $40,000 for three days, which is on top of the $200,000, three-year sponsorship of the Grand Annual Steeplechase.

And heck, why shouldn’t Lyndoch corporates and invited guests be able to let their hair down after the stress of hearing Lyndoch’s former acting Chief Financial Officer say he doesn’t support its proposed $22 million medical clinic and, as a private citizen, he fears for Lyndoch’s financial future.

Nobody has a problem with Lyndoch residents enjoying a day out in the bus, placing a few bets and having a glass of bubbles, before retiring home for a cup of tea.

But the community is not stupid: this whole race-week get up is not about the residents.

The residents are a shield for the blatant fact that Lyndoch is spending tens of thousands a year on the horse racing industry.

Drink up! Eat up! Go you good things!

Does any other aged care home in Australia do such a thing? I doubt it.

As a community, do we accept it?

Carol Altmann – The Terrier

Lyndoch Living has another outbreak of scabies.

The fresh outbreak in the Garden View wing comes four months after confirmation of an outbreak in the Audrey Prider Centre.

That confirmation in December came after months of complaints from residents and Lyndoch staff about a nasty rash coming and going through APC.

I am unsure about the scale of this latest outbreak, but families of residents in Garden View have been notified and all residents in Garden View are now being treated.

Lyndoch Living was contacted for comment today, but has not responded.

The scabies outbreak comes amid questions over the priorities and direction of Lyndoch Living as it prepares to build a $22 million medical clinic on site to replace the current Warrnambool Medical Clinic in Liebig St.

It also comes amid questions as to why there has been a string of resignations from Lyndoch in recent weeks, including senior executive Dr Ed Rhodes on Monday, and four members of the finance team in the past month.