Macquarie Home Stay Dubbo: Patient accommodation receives $2.45 million for expansion

An $2.4m expansion of the Macquarie Home Stay in Dubbo will double the facility’s current capacity. See what it means for patients who travel for treatment.

Dubbo MP Dugald Saunders with Macquarie Home Stay managing director Rod Crowfoot and patient Owen Campbell from Gwabegar.

Dubbo’s specialised patient accommodation facility is set to double its capacity, providing relief for people travelling long distances for medical treatment.

Dubbo MP Dugald Saunders has announced that Macquarie Home Stay would be receiving $2.45 million from the NSW Government.

The funding is to deliver a multipurpose oncology accommodation precinct and 26 additional rooms, more than doubling the current capacity at the facility.

The aim is to give more patients and their families access to affordable accommodation while seeking medical treatment in Dubbo.

The “home away from home” facility currently reaches maximum capacity and is unable to provide accommodation for patients who are needing spontaneous urgent medical care.

Rod Crowfoot from Dubbo Macquarie Home Stay. Picture: David Varga

“Following the opening of the Western Cancer Centre, Dubbo has become a centre of excellence for healthcare across the entire region,” Mr Saunders said.

“We know people will continue to come to Dubbo to receive health treatment, and we’re committed to removing barriers to ensure everyone can get the care they need no matter where they live.”

Macquarie Home Stay managing director Rod Crowfoot said the demand for affordable patient accommodation was clear, with the Western Cancer Centre providing care to people living right across the region, including Mudgee, Walgett, Bourke and Cobar.

“I’m proud that we’ve been able to support patients, their families and their carers across Central, Western and Far Western NSW during some of the toughest moments of their lives,” Mr Crowfoot said.

“This really does become a ‘home away from home’ as people become repeat visitors during treatment, and often need to stay for extended periods of 5 or 6 weeks. This expansion is going to allow us to support so many more people that are sometimes missing out.”

However this week’s announcement of the $2.5m has been labelled a “political stunt”.

Dubbo councillor Joshua Black has labelled the announcement as “politicised”.

Dubbo councillor Joshua Black said Mr Saunders “politicised” the funding announcement, claiming it was “very misleading”.

Mr Saunders disagreed, stating that the Labor Government cut its original election promise since winning the federal election in May 2022.

“Since the Federal Labor Government pulled funding for this vital expansion, I’ve been working with the Premier, Deputy Premier and Minister for Regional Health Bronnie Taylor to highlight the importance of this investment,” Mr Saunders said.

However, Black states the funding was “never allocated” by Labor which planned to reanalyse funding to produce a “fair” and “equal” commitment for many facilities in the region and around Australia.

“The Federal Government support the Macquarie Home Stay and spending money to build the facility and it is a great facility for people in the western region,” Mr Black said.

“He politicised the funding announcement for an essential service for the most vulnerable cancer patients and I think that is disgraceful.

“It is 100 per cent right to spend taxpayer money on that facility and the prevision of that service.

“Everyone supports money for Macquarie Home Stay and there is no doubt about that.”