Who can stay at Childhood Cancer Support?
We welcome any regional family who lives more than 50 kilometres outside of the Brisbane metropolitan area and whose child is receiving cancer treatment at the Queensland Children’s Hospital to our long-stay accommodation units at South Brisbane and Herston and our short-stay accommodation at Woolloongabba.
Are there any costs to stay at Childhood Cancer Support?
Childhood Cancer Support prides itself on offering no-cost accommodation for the whole family. This means, if you have partners, spouses, siblings, grandparents or even friends coming to visit, we won’t charge you a cent. There are no costs associated with our transport service, gym access or maintenance. We take care of everything, so you can take of each other.
What is included in the long-stay units?
All linen, kitchen supplies and everything else you would normally need in a fully furnished unit. All you need to do is bring your personal effects (clothes etc) plus supply your own food. Note – Childhood Cancer Support has a wonderful collaboration with OzHarvest to supply fresh fruit, vegetables, meats and other food supplies which are delivered on a weekly basis for our in-house families – all free of charge.
How long can my family stay at Childhood Cancer Support?
You and your family are welcome to stay in our long-stay accommodation units at either our South Brisbane units or Herston units for as long as you need – that is, until you have your doctor’s permission to return home. Sometimes this is only one month – other times it can be up to 18 months or longer. For this reason, our long-stay units are designed to feel as homely as possible, equipped with all the facilities you need.
Where is the long-stay South Brisbane and Herston accommodation units located?
- 94 Stephens Road, South Brisbane
- 23 Crown Street, South Brisbane
- 11 Bramston Terrace, Herston
- 15 Bramston Terrace, Herston
- 17 Bramston Terrace, Herston
- 47 Garrick Terrace, Herston
Where is the short-stay accommodation at Woolloongabba?
- 87 Annerley Road, Woolloongabba
How long can I stay at Childhood Cancer Support’s short-stay accommodation?
Our short-stay accommodation rooms are available to families whose children need to come back to Brisbane for regular medical check-ups. Accommodation is also available in our short-stay rooms for families who are on our wait list for a long-stay accommodation unit at either our South Brisbane or Herston facilities.
What is the Patient Travel Subsidy Scheme (PTSS) and how does it work?
PTSS is administered by Queensland Health and may provide assistance towards your travel and accommodation costs if you reside outside of the Brisbane metropolitan area, i.e. more than 50 kilometres from Brisbane. To find out more information about PTSS and to check on your eligibility, please contact your hospital social worker or visit the Queensland Health PTSS information page here.
If I am a resident from Brisbane, can I still apply for PTSS?
Unfortunately, PTSS is not open to residents or patients who reside in Brisbane. The Patient Travel Subsidy Scheme provides financial assistance for eligible patients to access specialist medical services not available locally in their regional hospitals.
Does Childhood Cancer Support only accept Queensland residents?
While the vast majority of our families reside in Queensland, we have accommodated many families from Northern NSW, as well as some from other states and overseas. We do our very best to assess each family’s needs on a case-by-case basis. If you are not a Queensland resident and your child is receiving oncology treatment at the Queensland Children’s Hospital, please call the Childhood Cancer Support office on 07 3844 5000 and speak to one of our friendly staff to see if we can help.
Thankfully, there are other avenues you may be able to take (for example, if you’re from NSW and live closer to Brisbane than Sydney and your child is receiving treatment at the Queensland Children’s Hospital, NSW offer IPTAAS. IPTAAS is the Isolated Patients Travel and Accommodation Assistance Scheme. This is a NSW Government scheme providing financial assistance towards travel and accommodation costs when a patient needs to travel long distances for treatment that is not available locally – find out more at www.enable.health.nsw.gov.au/services/iptaas). If you are not a Queensland resident, we would advise you to speak to your local hospital or medical professional.
Am I still required to fill out a PTSS (or IPTAAS) form for short-term accommodation?
The simple answer is “yes”! PTSS allows us to continue providing oncology families with quality accommodation.
Is there a transport service provided to get me from my unit to the Queensland Children’s Hospital and back?
Yes, Childhood Cancer Support provides a free transport service several times per day to and from the Queensland Children’s Hospital which is available from Monday to Friday. To see our run schedule visit www.ccs.org.au/how-we-help/transport/
