The new paediatric hospice, Mounties Care Cottage, to be built within The Children’s Hospital at Westmead, is welcome news.  

“For too many families, access to appropriate care has been limited by geography, availability, or lack of dedicated paediatric services,” says Camilla Rowland, CEO, Palliative Care Australia (PCA). 

“Mounties Care Cottage will help change that. It will provide children and young adults with life-limiting illnesses — and their families — with comfort, connection and care when it matters most. It will offer more families the ability to stay together, in a supportive environment, closer to home.” 

The hospice is inspired by Sydney boy, Rio Fowler, and the work of Rio’s Legacy.  

Rio was just 16 months old when he was diagnosed with a rare and terminal condition known as arterial vasculopathy disease. In his final days, Rio and his family were cared for at Bear Cottage in Manly — part of the Sydney Children’s Hospitals Network (SCHN) — where he died in 2018.  

Following his death, his parents, Ryan and Karen, established Rio’s Legacy, a charity committed to supporting families of children with life-limiting conditions and advocating for the need for more paediatric hospices. 

PCA congratulates Ryan and Karen for inspiring the creation of Mounties Care Cottage and their continued advocacy for better access to paediatric palliative care. 

Ms Rowland adds, “This initiative also reflects the needs identified in Australia’s Paediatric Palliative Care National Action Plan – to ensure children, young people and their families have genuine choice in where and how they receive care.”  

PCA also acknowledges the ongoing efforts of Palliative Care New South Wales. 

“Palliative Care NSW welcomes the announcement of a new children's hospice to be built within The Children’s Hospital at Westmead. Receiving care and support in a home-like environment is known to have wide reaching benefits. This is a significant step forward to providing more choice for families and to improving the accessibility of paediatric palliative care in NSW, particularly for children and families located in Greater Western Sydney and Western NSW,” says Kirsty Blades, CEO, Palliative Care New South Whales. 

“Up to this point, the only dedicated children’s hospice in NSW has been Bear Cottage, located in Manly. Bear Cottage is an exceptional facility that has been caring for children and their families from not just NSW, but across Australia since 2001. I know the difference that Bear Cottage has made to over 1,000 families since it opened.  It was also built on the back of strong community support and donations, and Mounties Care Cottage will now have that same opportunity to make a positive difference to children and families.” 

Palliative Care Australia looks forward to continuing to work with our members, governments, service providers, and communities to ensure that every child, young adult and family who needs paediatric palliative care can access it — wherever they live, and whenever they need it.