FAQs

FairCare is a not-for-profit charitable foundation registered on 21 December 2021 by the:

• Australian Securities and Investments Commission as a public company limited by guarantee, ACN: 656 196 324
• Australian Charities and Not-for-profits Commission as a recognised not-for-profit charitable organisation, ABN: 296 656 196 324
• Australian Taxation Office as a Deductible Gift Recipient (DGR), which means all donations $2 or more are tax-deductible in Australia.

Being harmed by your healthcare facility is a unique and challenging experience. While our healthcare systems strive for the highest standards of safety and quality, mistakes can and do happen and they occur probably more than the public realises. Thankfully, most adverse events or complications are not serious or life threatening. However, serious complications that result in lifelong injury or death do occur. FairCare was borne out of one injured patient’s journey to health and financial recovery. At the end of that journey, her and her lawyer felt compelled to do more for people tragically harmed or coping with a loss resulting from care received in a Victorian public or private hospital.

Support group

FairCare has established a private, member-only Facebook group for people adversely affected by healthcare harm and who want to receive and give support to others in the same situation. The group is facilitated and moderated by Faircare’s founding directors and provides authoritative information and guidance for its members. People can access the support group by request and if they agree to follow the group rules.

Visit Private Support Group

Arranged support (from late 2022)

FairCare is setting up arrangements with relevant service providers to offer subsidised support to members. During 2022, FairCare will focus on establishing arrangements for psychological support, financial counselling, trained peer support, and legal advice and advocacy. If you are a relevant service provider and want to know how you can partner with us, please contact: info@faircare.org.au.

Peer support (from late 2022)

FairCare is committed to being community-led. As a charitable organisation, FairCare will attract and foster volunteer support from people with lived experience, who also have the capacity, experience or passion to offer their time and knowhow to its members. A diverse group of suitable volunteers with lived experience will have an opportunity to be trained to provide quality, trauma-informed peer-to-peer support to affected individuals and carers.

Support through reform (from 2023)

FairCare plans to build its community and commence a reform agenda from 2023. This includes expanding the Board of Directors, partner providers and its member base. FairCare also hopes to attract a diverse group of expert organisations to join its Alliance from the healthcare and legal sectors. With a solid community presence, we hope to lead a reform agenda that will increase public awareness, reduce the burden of medical treatment injury in Victoria, reflect the current knowledge base in this area and represent the views of our community.

100% of donations to FairCare are put to work to implement the FairCare strategy. There are no paid staff at FairCare. There are no premises to rent, or expensive overheads. We believe in doing our business online and keeping a small footprint.

Our service model includes a select group of partner organisations which contribute to the funding of FairCare, or subsidise the support provided to our members. In turn, our partners have an opportunity to connect to our member pool. We will always vet our partners to ensure that we offer quality, person-centred services.

You can donate via our donations page.

Any person who is adversely affected by healthcare injury or harm (medical treatment injury) in Victoria, and/or their caregivers or surviving family members, are welcome to join the FairCare support group. FairCare is based in Victoria and has expertise in the Victorian healthcare and legal (personal injury) systems. People from other Australian jurisdictions are welcome to join FairCare, however our support and advice may not be as relevant for injuries occurring in their state or territory.

No, FairCare does not provide funds for people, goods or services. FairCare plans to arrange direct support through partner organisations at a partial or fully subsidised or bulk-billed rate.

We are a fledgling charitable organisation and do not currently own or rent a public office that can be visited. However, as our community grows stronger, we may change the way we offer support in the future.

No, while we know there is a level of scepticism about FairCare partnering with law firms to offer legal advice and advocacy to Victorians adversely affected by medical treatment injury, we are also aware of the stigma that seems to dog personal injury claims and the lawyers that represent them. FairCare supports the right of injured patients and their families to seek fair redress for losses from healthcare injury and aims to address the stigma through improved public awareness and information.  

We partner with quality law firms because it’s a model that’s been demonstrated to work well for other types of personal injury. An exemplar is the Victorian Road Transport Support Service, (now Amber Community), which started off as a small support group over 30 years ago. We are proud to follow their example. FairCare will only partner with organisations that are committed to the highest levels of service for injured patients and their families.