This year the Good Friday Appeal and The Royal Children’s Hospital will allocate $3 million in funding to more than 30 regional health services to ensure every child receives the best possible healthcare, no matter what their postcode is.

As the Good Friday Appeal marks 95 years of community support, sick children and their families in regional Victoria will continue to access world-class care closer to home, thanks to the generosity of Victorians.

This investment will support critical projects such as upgrading lifesaving equipment, offering additional training, and providing scholarships for healthcare professionals.

More than $8.5 million in funding has been allocated to regional Victoria over three years, highlighting the Good Friday Appeal and The Royal Children’s Hospital’s commitment to every child.

A great example of the significance of this funding is the Good Friday Appeal’s long-standing support for essential equipment and resources that enhance care at The Royal Children’s Hospital.

Over the years, this support has extended to equipment such as neonatal cots, nursing skill simulation mannequins, infant warmers, endoscopy equipment, phototherapy units, vital sign monitors, syringe drivers, and apnoea monitors.

Through the new regional funding, equipment of this kind is now being provided to regional hospitals, either as upgrades or as additional resources to enhance care locally Goulburn Valley Health, Albury Wodonga Health and Northeast Health Wangaratta.

This funding will help families across Victoria and southern New South Wales, by reducing travel times and improving medical outcomes.

Health Minister Mary-Anne Thomas joined Good Friday Appeal chairman Penny Fowler and executive director Rebecca Cowan and RCH CEO Dr Peter Steer in Ballarat to announce $3 million in funding for these regions on Monday, 9 February.

Ms Fowler said regional funding provides an opportunity to keep kids closer to home.

“This funding supports the hospital’s mission to extend its reach across the state and helps regional children and their families receive world-class care close to where they live, reducing an enormous stress for so many,” Ms Fowler said.

“The Good Friday Appeal has had an unwavering commitment to supporting our state’s most vulnerable - sick children and their families - for the past 95 years and this new funding is a smart and efficient means to enhance regional capacity.

“On behalf of everyone at the appeal I would like to express a big thank you to the whole community for your incredible support.”

Ms Cowan said the funding underscores the appeal’s commitment to delivering critical healthcare improvements in regional areas.

“These funds will support vital projects aimed at enhancing patient care and equipping regional hospitals with much-needed resources,” she said.

“Regional Victoria is the backbone of the Good Friday Appeal. For decades, regional communities have rallied around the local CFA as they rattle tins, or supported the fundraising efforts of local Lions, Rotary and Kiwanis Clubs, schools, businesses, and local families to raise funds for sick kids, who now may be able to receive the care they need closer to home.”