Mary Valley mum vows to continue fight against Children’s Ward closure

A second petition to save the Children’s Ward from permanent closure has stalled, but the mum driving both petitions remains determined to get the State Government to take notice of the region’s plight.

A second petition to save the Children’s Ward from permanent closure has stalled, but the mum driving both petitions remains determined to get the State Government to take notice of the region’s plight.​

A Mary Valley mother leading the fight to save the Gympie Hospital Children’s Ward is determined that two petitions she started to protest the closure of the ward be presented to the State Government.

Emily McGourty started a change.org petition in May after it was reported by The Gympie Times the Children’s Ward was facing permanent closure - that petition quickly amassed more than 3000 signatures.

But because she was then advised a change.org petition had no government authority, Ms McGourty then launched a separate petition that could be officially presented Parliament.

That petition, sponsored by Gympie MP Tony Perrett has attracted only 1000 signatures since it was shared.

Ms McGourty said her goal for the petition was to reach 5000 signatures before it closes in August.

“I feel that we are missing a massive target of people seeing this,” she said.

She said there had been no update on the fate of the Children’s Ward, with sick kids still being transferred to Sunshine Coast University Hospital, more than 90km away.

“The situation is still going, as in we can’t get care for our kids up here. Nothing’s really changed,” she said.

“I know one incident, seven to nine hours for an unwell child in emergency at Gympie before they got transferred to SCUH.”

Ms McGourty’s 15-year-old son Jaxon has also been transferred to SCUH to receive monthly treatments for a rare autoimmune disease.

To sign the petition, click here.