Gold Coast Health Project Manager Jessica Gisler put her own fears aside and donated blood as part of Lifeblood's February drive to support cancer patients in need.

Cancer patients require more than 10,000 blood donations every week, and with diagnoses predicted to increase by 22% by 2031, the need for more blood donors is growing too.

This was Jessica's first time donating as she is petrified of needles, but she was well supported and tackled her fears head-on to help those in need.

Better Cardiac Care for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peoples is a national initiative aimed at closing the gap in life expectancy for First Nations peoples.

Cardiovascular conditions make the greatest contribution to the gap in mortality between Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples and other Australians.

Through this program we can increase access to services, better manage risk factors, and improve the coordination of care for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander patients.

The LIFESpace areas within the inpatient rehabilitation units at Gold Coast University Hospital and Robina Hospital continue to improve lives.

The therapy space lets patients engage in everyday activities that bring meaning and purpose to their life.   

Many patients lose confidence due to their injury or frailty, so the LIFESpace area engages them in daily tasks such as shopping and gardening. 

He’s known in these corridors as the music man, and with good reason.

Vince Fuda, an Assistant in Nursing in our Mental Health and Specialist Services at Gold Coast University Hospital runs regular music request nights for older patients (over 65s) in the Orchid Unit.

The playlist Vince says can be quite surprising, ranging from Hendrix to Elvis and Tom Jones classics.

What began as playing tunes on Vince’s iPhone has developed into hour-long popular music sessions, with requested songs played via YouTube clips on a tv screen in one of the meeting rooms.

ICU Registered Nurse, Jessica Knight, has recently returned from a six-week volunteer effort in Kenya where she donated an incredible 63kg of stock collected from various departments (headed for the rubbish bin) across Gold Coast University Hospital.

During her visit Jess volunteered in two rural hospitals in Kenya and one tertiary hospital in the capital of Nairobi where the lack of basic supplies was alarming.

“Kenya does an amazing job at providing care with what they have, as they have a serious lack for basic supplies.

Gold Coasters are urged to be on alert for heat-related illness, with the current heatwave expected to last into the weekend.

Almost 180 graduate nurses and midwives began their careers with Gold Coast Health this month, servicing both Gold Coast University Hospital and Robina Hospital. 

Jesse, 7, and his family were holidaying on the Gold Coast. They were having a great time and planned to visit theme parks before mum's intuition landed him in hospital.

Mum Vanessa was a bit worried after she noticed Jesse had been more thirsty than usual and going to the bathroom more frequently at night. She recognised the symptoms of possible diabetes and took Jesse to children's emergency.

Emergency Physician and Paediatrician Dr Christa Bell said unfortunately Vanessa’s fears were confirmed.

Gold Coast Health has launched the Yabbabah Men's Health and Well Being program, a program that will give Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander men a safe place to yarn and share whilst providing easy access to health services across the Gold Coast.

The launch event brought together Gold Coast Health staff, community members and elders, as well as our partners from Kalwun Development Corporation.

This community-focused program marks another significant step forward for Gold Coast health on our path to health equity.

A new cohort of medical interns will begin their careers with Gold Coast Health this week. After completing a week of orientation, in training workshops and refining their skills in Basic Life Support and Infection Control, they will spend a week shadowing staff on the wards before beginning their first rotation.