The Mary Potter Foundation
Helping those in our community
In 1994 under the auspices and assistance of the Sisters of the Little Company of Mary, Calvary Health care Tasmania established a service to provide a unique healthcare service for those in need of hospital care who many not be able to access the facilities of Calvary Health Care Tasmania for reasons of economic hardship.
About Mary Potter
The tradition of the Sisters of the Little Company of Mary dates back to 1877, in Nottingham, England.
It was then, in a remodelled factory, that an English woman of vision, Mary Potter, and a few followers began to pray and care for the sick, poor, unwanted and dying.
Mary Potter and her early companions ministered to the needy in the spirit of Mary, mother of Jesus. That small company of faithful followers was the beginning of today’s order of the Sisters of the Little Company of Mary.
Establishment
The Mary Potter Foundation was established through an initial grant of $50,000 from Calvary Health Care Tasmania and from generous individual donations from the wider Tasmanian community.
The Need
Tasmanians, similar to Australians in other states, are experiencing increased hardship. With an ageing population, the demands on medical resources and healthcare in Tasmania, Calvary Health Care has initiated this program for those in need.
Commitment
Calvary Health Care's Tasmanian services were established in 1938 and take pride in our distinguished reputation of serving the Tasmanian Community.
This reputation is founded on providing high quality clinical services in a caring and compassionate environment.
Administration
Referral to the Foundation is open to Calvary Health Care’s accredited medical practitioners, who are required to ensure those patients referred meet the necessary guidelines. The administrators of the Foundation (Calvary Community Council) will be guided by the recommendations of these medical practitioners.
Criteria for assistance
Whilst administrators of the Foundation will always reserve the right to assist a person they believe to be ‘disadvantaged’, nevertheless, in ordinary circumstances, an applicant seeking financial from the Foundation must meet the criteria as set out in the application form, and supplied below.
The Mary Potter Foundation is administered by the Calvary Community Council (CCC) which assesses all applications.
Applications to the Mary Potter Foundation are made by accredited Medical Practitioners who recommend treatment or a procedure for those experiencing economic hardship. For the purposes of this application process, the CCC considers the accredited Medical Practitioner as the applicant.
The Mary Potter Foundation considers applications where a patient lacks capacity to pay due to some form of disadvantage or impaired social-economic circumstances acknowledged by the Medical Practitioner. It invites patients to make a contribution to payment where possible.
If the patient does not have private health insurance the Calvary Community Council considers full or part payment of Calvary hospital charges.
If the patient does have some level of private health insurance the Calvary Community Council considers full or part payment of Calvary hospital charges above what is paid by the patient’s private health insurance.
It is the responsibility of the applying Medical Practitioner to ensure all other medical practitioners involved in the care of the patient agree to charge Medicare rates only.
The Foundation does not cover extra medical costs billed by third party medical suppliers such as (but not limited to) Pathology and Imaging services.
The Council approves requests for funding from a limited resource and for this reason is unable to fund the cost of prostheses.
If prostheses are required the applying Doctor is encouraged to negotiate arrangements with suppliers.