The pilot program, which celebrated its first anniversary recently, was made possible thanks to the support of Mo Bros and Mo Sistas that allowed Movember to invest $3.6 million to secure the program and recruit its first nurses in 2012.
To date, 12 nurses have been placed in metropolitan and regional hospitals around the country, providing specialist care and support to Australian men with prostate cancer. The announcement of the Government’s support will see the program double in size, providing more Aussie men and their families greater access to this vital service.
Dr Anthony Lowe, Chief Executive of PCFA, commended Health Minister Tanya Pilbersek on the announcement and applauded the Government’s commitment of resources to Australia’s only prostate cancer specialist nursing program.
“This is a significant day for the Prostate Cancer Specialist Nursing Program. PCFA is enormously grateful to The Movember Foundation for having the vision to support the pilot program which has enabled us to lay the foundations for the service. And we applaud the Federal Government for its tremendous efforts to help sustain such an important program. This will allow the recruitment of more nurses to help meet the needs of prostate cancer patients,” said Dr Lowe.
The program, which is the first of its kind in Australia, is designed to provide men both clinical and supportive care throughout their prostate cancer journey. PCFA’s Director of Health and Education Programs, Julie Sykes, says the program has shown promising results in its first year with many families already benefiting from the free service.
“A diagnosis of prostate cancer causes significant anxiety for men and their families. Men not only face the prospect of treatment, but also may have to live with long term side effects, and face prolonged surveillance programs requiring ongoing hospital visits, sometimes involving multiple specialists. The Prostate Cancer Specialist Nurses are a central point of contact to help men navigate this process.”
Movember is committed to the support of innovative programs and is proud to be catalytic funder of initiatives, like the Prostate Cancer Specialist Nurses Program, that improve the lives of men.
This is a proud day for the Movember movement and reinforces the power of the humble Mo.
L-R: Jason Hincks (Movember COO), David Sandoe OAM (PCFA National Chairman), Tanya Plibersek (Health Minister), Julie Sykes (PCFA Director of Health and Education Programs), Sharon Slack (Prostate Cancer Specialist Nurse), Prof John Mattick (Executive Director of the Garvan Institute of Medical Research)
