2022 is nearly over and at The Common Good we’ve got plenty to celebrate as the year wraps up. We also have a lot to be thankful for – including the supporters who’ve donated to life-changing research and helped to make significant medical breakthroughs or volunteered their time to help hospital patients or to an event or fundraising activity.
In this blog, we’re going to share a few highlights of our year and the impact you’ve helped us to achieve in 2022.
Research Impacts Realised in 2022
There have been some incredible research impacts realised in 2022.
- The ICU of The Future was unveiled in mid-December, marking a historic milestone five years in the making. This project has come to fruition thanks to many, including researchers who’ve dedicated their time to improving the ICU environment and design for patients and their families, and more than 900 generous supporters who answered the call for help to donate to this revolutionary project.
- 36 lives have been saved thanks to HEVP-heart transplants in the Trans-Tasman clinical trial. “It is great to see the long study translate into life-saving outcomes. HEVP means we can potentially transport a donor heart from Brisbane to Perth, and maybe even overseas,” Director of The Critical Care Research Group, Professor John Fraser said. Read more about this trial here.
- The Queensland Lung Transplant Service at The Prince Charles Hospital is working on a screening technique to detect silicosis early and identify those who may be more vulnerable to it, as well as investigating if the damaging impact of silica in the lungs can be reversed. This team has previously developed a world-first test to directly measure the amount of silica in a person’s lungs and uncovered a revolutionary procedure for mild cases of silicosis called a Whole Lung Lavage.
When you support The Common Good, you’re helping sustain life-changing medical research.
You’re also backing researchers who have dedicated their lives to making medical breakthroughs to improve the lives of those we know and love. With your support, there were 20 research grants completed this year.
Also, there were 25 research grants awarded in 2022.
7 x Caboolture Grants
1 x PHD Scholarship Grant
12 x Innovation Grants
2 x Research Fellowship Grants
3 x Equipment Grants
Expansion of our social enterprise
In January, we were proud to open The Café for The Common Good’s fourth location, Roma Street Police Headquarters. The expansion of our social enterprise model means that we can continue to self-fund our operating costs, ensuring that all public donated funds are maximised to have the greatest impact.
Strategic guidance and direction
We give our thanks again to The Prince Charles Hospital Foundation Board Members. Not only is our Board comprised of a talented and driven group of business leaders, but their Board positions are also held in a voluntary capacity meaning all time and expertise are generously donated. This year, The Prince Charles Hospital Foundation welcomed three new Board members; Corinne Mullholand, Martin Rowan and Shannon Wiloughby and we congratulate them for their appointments.
Volunteering for The Common Good in 2022
We are involved in several incredible events that contribute to ground-breaking research, as well as crucial patient-focused projects and programs, including Ekka, Australian Unity Tour de Brisbane, Giving Day, and the esteemed Echo Australia Conference.
The success of those events relies on volunteer participation from generous people like you, and this year our incredible volunteers gave us approximately 8874 hours of their precious time.
Is your new year’s resolution to give back to the community? If so, we would love you to consider volunteering your time to The Common Good in 2023. Click here to read about our upcoming volunteering opportunities.
Hospital Volunteers in 2022
The Charlie’s Angels have supported patients and their families, visitors to The Prince Charles Hospital and its staff for decades.
This year, our Charlie’s Angels volunteers clocked up close to 7800 volunteer hours, and that’s in a year when most of the angels were offsite for the first six months due to Covid-19.
We round off the year with 96 Charlie’s Angels. Currently, they are completing about 120 shifts per week, equating to approximately 480 volunteer hours a week.
Recently, we began working alongside the Caboolture Hospital on their volunteer program. We are proud to be assisting a hospital that is expanding to better service and support the region’s growing population. We look forward to more volunteers joining us at the Caboolture Hospital and dedicating their time to an invaluable service. Learn more about volunteering at Caboolture Hospital here.
Fundraising Feats in 2022
1. Giving day:
The community rallied together to raise more than $250,000 to support several patient-centred projects within The Prince Charles Hospital and Caboolture Hospital to help patients get home from hospital sooner and reduce the likelihood of them needing to return
Read more here.
Giving Day
Therapy dog visits in the Adult Mental Health ward and a sensory garden in the CAM unit are the result of generosity bestowed upon The Prince Charles Hospital on Giving Day in 2021.
2. Ekka Strawberry Sundae sales:
2022 was the year the Ekka returned and the year Brisbane showed us just how much they missed their Strawberry Sundaes, with record breaking sales.
Strawberry Sundaes
Over 127,000 Strawberry Sundaes were sold over the 9-day period, with 20,200 on People’s Day alone.
3. 5th Annual Live Street Art Battle:
This year, the 5th Annual Live Street Art Battle took place at The Avenue on the Gold Coast, and it didn’t disappoint, with artists creating masterpieces to wow the crowd and the event funding more than 143 hours of medical research.
Street Art Battle
Over 143 hours of medical research from amazing artists.
4. Australian Unity Tour de Brisbane:
Close to $75,000 raised at Brisbane’s largest cycling event in April, the Australian Unity Tour de Brisbane.
Tour De Brisbane
Close to $75,000 raised thanks to amazing fundraisers riding in the Australian Unity Tour De Brisbane.
5. Ride for Good
The rubber hit the road in March 2022 with over $30,000 raised by some of Brisbane’s leading businesspeople in the inaugural motorcycle ride, Ride for Good.
6. Shine Lawyers Golf Day
The firsts kept coming in 2022, with The Common Good named as the proud charity beneficiary of Shine Lawyers very first Golf Day at the Pacific Harbour Golf and Country Club.
Thank you for supporting The Common Good in 2022
We are so incredibly grateful for your support! Thank you so much for everything you do for The Common Good and the community. See you in 2023!
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