The latest data suggests one in six counselling contacts to Kids Helpline is suicide-related, and three-quarters come outside business hours.

yourtown CEO Tracy Adams said the national fundraising campaign was in response to the increasing number of young people seeking help late at night and in the early hours of the morning.

“We’re seeing a steady rise in children and young people reaching out when most other services are closed,” Ms Adams said.

“Kids Helpline is answering more than 130,000 contacts a year, but the demand for counselling support is growing. Right now, we can only respond to three in every five contacts.

“Some of the children we support are as young as five. We don’t want to see any child or young person needing support and not being able to get it – that’s a heartbreaking gap.”

Kids Helpline is Australia’s only free, private and confidential 24/7 phone and online counselling service for young people aged 5 to 25. It’s a vital safety net for those facing mental health challenges, bullying, abuse, family breakdown, or loneliness.

The Giving Day will take place on 24 July, reflecting the 24/7 nature of the service, which operates around the clock to support young people when they need it most.

“Our Giving Day is a chance for all in our community to say: we see you, we hear you, and we’ll show up for you,” Ms Adams said.

Alongside government funding and public donations, the Bupa Foundation has proudly contributed more than $3 million since 2019 to help Kids Helpline reach more young people.

Bupa APAC Chief Sustainability and Corporate Affairs Officer Roger Sharp said the reality is that current funding, from all sources, isn’t enough to meet growing demand for Kids Helpline services.

“That’s why the Bupa Foundation will continue to provide funding support to Kids Helpline and why we’re encouraging everyone to support this vital campaign, so no child is left waiting for help when they need it most,” Mr Sharp said.

Kids Helpline counsellors conduct on average 89 crisis or safety interventions every week. Most of these happen after-hours, with 75 per cent of all contacts now occurring outside the traditional 9-to-5 window.

“Whether it’s 2am or 2pm during school hours, Kids Helpline is there — and your donation helps make sure no child in crisis goes unheard,” Ms Adams said.

Your gift makes a real difference:

·         $55 gives a counselling session to one child in need

·         $110 supports a young person through two or more critical moments

·         $550 supports a full day of critical responses, supporting multiple children and young people

Kids Helpline is funded by yourtown, with support from government/s, corporate and community donations. However, additional funding is needed to increase the capacity of the service to lift response rates. 

To donate or find out more information about the Kids Helpline Giving Day visit here

More from Bupa Eden:

• Golf keeps Bupa Eden residents fit and engaged
• Bupa Eden residents know how to make a splash

“The staff have really gone above and beyond to decorate the home and make this long weekend as enjoyable as they can for residents and relatives,” Ms Farrer said.

“We have a makeshift beach, complete with real sand, a mini pool, a boxing kangaroo, a screening of the movie Crocodile Dundee and plenty of Slim Dusty and John Williamson songs.”

“We welcome the whole family to come down and celebrate this great day by taking part in the thong toss or our cooee competition while the kids have a splash in the pool,” she said.

Resident Francis Sternbaur said she was happy to have had input into the theme and is looking forward to judging the decorations along with her husband and friends in the home.

“I made a suggestion about having thongs hanging from the roof, but they ended up dangling from the trees instead," Mrs Sternbaur said.

“It is hard to pick a favourite decoration but I must say that I really like the beach and pool.”

UP NEXT:

Kids and elderly at greatest risk as Australian summer heats up

Keisha is studying medicine at Monash University in Melbourne, and hopes to work as an Obstetrician on Thursday Island, her family’s homeplace.

A diligent student, and active member of her school community, Keisha served as school Vice-Captain, Athletics Captain, and Debating Captain.

When her ATAR result fell below the tough requirements for initial acceptance into medicine, Keisha was determined to find another way to pursue her dream.

Keisha completed a Bachelor of Science, complementing her studies with internships at Bupa and a medical research laboratory.

This cemented her desire to work in the medical field.

After graduating, she was accepted into a post-graduate degree in Medicine through an alternative entry pathway offered by Monash University, which aims to increase the number of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander graduate doctors.

In 2017, the average ATAR of students who received an offer to study a Bachelor of Medicine at Monash University was 99.25.

Entry requirements often reflect demand, rather than the attributes needed to be successful in the medical field.

With Indigenous doctors making up just 0.4% of people currently practicing medicine, Keisha will be filling an important gap in the medical community.

“Indigenous Australians have the worst health outcomes in Australia, and since the stolen generation there has been mistrust in Australia’s health system. The fear of your child being taken, and a lack of understanding of traditional medical practices prevents many Indigenous Australians from seeking medical treatment today.”

Building employment opportunities and career pathways are key pillars of Bupa’s Reconciliation Action Plan, along with a commitment to ending rheumatic heart disease and publicly supporting the Uluru Statement from the Heart.

Dr Dwayne Crombie, Managing Director of Bupa Health Insurance saw the importance of a community led approach to health care as a young public health doctor, working to end rheumatic fever among Maori and Pacific Islander communities in South Auckland.

As a 10x10 corporate partner of CareerTrackers, Bupa is committed to hosting a minimum of ten interns each year, for the next ten years.

Keisha is one of 15 CareerTrackers interns who joined Bupa this summer, with nine working towards a career in health and care.

Reflecting on her ambition to be a doctor, Keisha said "I just want young Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people to know you're in control of your own destination no matter what the journey".

“We knew that we needed to become more targeted and practical in how we enacted our Plan. That is why we have focused on funding innovation towards ending RHD in Australia and on providing career pathways for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander students.

“RHD is an entirely preventable disease, yet Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples are 20 times more likely to die from RHD than their non-Indigenous peers.

“We’ve invested money to create two END RHD communities in the Northern Territory to test a new community-led model of care in partnership with Telethon Kids and the Menzies School of Health Research. This model is now being expanded to another community in the Kimberley with the support of the Federal Government.

“Additionally, we have signed a partnership with the CareerTrackers internship program for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander university students, committing to 10 internships a year for 10 years and launched a scholarship to support Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander women at university,” Mr Bowden said.

Bupa has also announced its support for the Uluru Statement from the Heart, which calls for a First Nations Voice in the Australian Constitution and speaks to the work that must be done to empower Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples.

“Bupa’s support is underpinned by the voices of our employees who support constitutional recognition as an important step to improve the long-term health and emotional wellbeing of First Nations people,” Mr Bowden said.

“Before taking this position we spent time listening to our employees to understand why they felt it was important for Bupa to support the Statement and then worked with our Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander employees to craft the wording of our support and highlight how it related to our purpose.

Karen Mundine, Chief Executive Officer of Reconciliation Australia welcomed the commitment from Bupa.

Bupa launched its first Reconciliation Action Plan in 2015 and has used learnings from its implementation to improve the latest Plan.

UP NEXT:

Inclusion, diversity and Bupa

Meet Bupa's CareerTrackers interns - CareerTrackers interns with Dwayne Crombie. Natasha Ward, Tatiana Estrada and Samual Fisher

The woman who inspires me

Interning for the United Nations

Every part of his boat, from the hull to the smallest pole, are made entirely by hand, from scratch, showing his attention to detail and love of history.

"Building a model boat can be a real challenge. How did I start? A friend of mine got a kit years ago and built a Viking ship. I thought ‘oh yeah’, I'd like to have a go at that and I did," Mr Kelly said.

"This boat (pictured) is a HMS Victory from the 1800s’," he said.

Fred hasn’t always been a modeller though, he turned his profession of cabinet making to boats after retiring. When health issues and a lack of tooling prevented him from machining cabinets professionally, he decided to scale down his operation.

"It is just one of those things, I never really was interested in boats but I’m using my skills, keeping busy and challenging myself."

The recreation room serves as a makeshift workshop, as well as a storage space for all the tools he needs to create model boats.

"I couldn't tell you how many pieces are in the boat but there are a lot."

"This boat has taken me about 12 months so far, although I have to admit that I'm not consistently working on it."

Fred says scale modelling is not only about size, but about representing the past.

"You need patience to tackle a project like this and it is also a good teacher in that regard."

“I enjoy researching the models that I make, you can learn a lot from history and I try to use old methods such as soaking the wood in water so it can be shaped to the curvature of the hull.”

He has no intention of selling the models. Instead, he keeps them as a reminder of his old profession and his new found hobby.

"Really all you need is a Stanley knife, super glue, a ruler, paint brushes and some paint. You need a tub to soak the wood in water so you can curve and shape the wood and that’s about it."

A pioneering initiative recently unveiled by the British Health Secretary has enabled doctors to prescribe therapeutic hobbies for ailments.

Bupa Modbury General Manager Rajiv Chand shares the opinion that there is a real benefit in filling your time with a hobby.

“These days, it’s rare to see people with a hobby. Everyone is so busy, right?" Mr Chand said.

"But whether you’re busy with your career, spending time enjoying your retirement or engaging in some other activities at an aged care home, Fred is living proof that making time for a hobby can have positive benefits,” he said.

“We went out on the boat last year and again this year. We were lucky enough to have a humpback swim beside the boat then and this year they kept their distance but we still saw them,” Mrs Culle said.

“Even though I don’t know how to swim, I have a great respect for the ocean and I have always enjoyed being close to the sea,” she said.

Mrs Culle said it was not unusual for whales to come close to boats, as they are curious creatures and often interact with people in the same way.

Personal Care Assistant and organiser, Tammie Grimes said the trip is something that the residents look forward to all year round.

“This is the best time of the year to see them as they are south bound for Antarctica with their young,” Ms Grimes said.

"Last year, we had the whales close by the boat, at that time, they interacted with us and hopped beside us. It was truly amazing and this year we were lucky enough to see them again," she said.

The home’s General Manager, Kate Bain said the number of whales outside the Port has increased and so has the interest from residents in attending the cruise.

"We have new residents who weren’t on the cruise last year but had heard stories from residents who were."

"They were keen to have the beautiful creatures swim around them and I’m sure the whales were equally as keen to do some people spotting, which was really good for both us and them," Ms Bain said.

Read more about Bupa Eden:

• Golf keeps Bupa Eden residents fit and engaged
• Eden valentines find love again at Bupa aged care home

“Ikebana has been practiced for more than six hundred years and is an empowering form of self-expression for our residents who are living with dementia, they respond well and have shown improvements in their mood after a session,” Ms Timbang said.

A point which was reaffirmed by Bupa’s Head of Dementia Services, Margaret Ryan who said the innocuous nature of flower arranging provides an opportunity for socialising and a great initiative being run throughout Dementia Awareness Month.

“Interacting with flowers is a stimulative experience. A person living with a memory-loss condition may enjoy activities even if they do not remember them. What is important is that the moment is enjoyed, even though the experience may be soon forgotten, the sense of wellbeing and the positive feelings generated will be retained longer,” Ms Ryan said.

Partaking in group activities can be both engaging and satisfying even when language and processing skills are diminished by dementia.

“Flower arranging is simple, provides cognitive and sensory stimulation, can help preserve motor skills, and instils a sense of ownership, independence and accomplishment which is great for our residents living with dementia,” she said.

Loreto Kirribilli year 10 student, Isabella Rubina who volunteers at the home said the sessions have been just as beneficial for her as they have been for the residents.

“My grandfather had dementia, so I am familiar with disease. Volunteering at the home has been an eye opening experience and reminded me to continue being more compassionate,” she said.

UP NEXT:

A warm gesture for people with dementia.

Love helps fight breast cancer.

Bupa Australia and Kids Helpline inspire resilience through schools program.

Lord Leitch, Chairman of the Bupa Group said:

“I’m delighted the Honourable Nicola Roxon will become Chairman of Bupa Australia & New Zealand. Nicola brings a wealth of public and commercial experience to this position. Among her current roles, Nicola is a Non-Executive Director of Bupa Australia & New Zealand, the Bupa Health Foundation and listed entities Dexus and Lifestyle Communities. She is also Chair of the Cancer Council Australia.

“John has steered the business wonderfully well over the past ten years, overseeing its growth from a private health insurer into a major health and care company with more than six million customers. Today, Bupa Australia & New Zealand offers services across health insurance, aged care, retirement living, dental, optical and medical visa services. John’s leadership of the Bupa A&NZ Board has seen Bupa develop market leading positions in several of these areas.

“I’d like to recognize John for his outstanding contribution and congratulate Nicola for her appointment as we look to grow Bupa Australia & New Zealand as a true champion of the customer and place where our people love to work. This will help ensure strong and sustainable commercial success in the years ahead.”

About Honourable Nicola Roxon

A well-respected and former politician, Ms Roxon was a member of the Australian Parliament for 15 years (1998-2013). She served as Australia’s Health Minister for four years from 2007 and oversaw major reforms to Australia’s public hospital, primary care and preventative health systems. In 2011 she became Australia’s first female Attorney-General.

Ms Roxon has received national and international awards in recognition of her public health work, particularly in tobacco control. Under her leadership, Australia successfully introduced a world first - plain packaging of tobacco with large, graphic health warnings. This helped reduce cigarette consumption and its associated health impacts.

When asked by Labor Senator Sam Dastyari why management salaries were not published, Bupa says it would back that proposal provided it applied to any part of the health supply sector that receives taxpayers’ money.

Dr Crombie told the Inquiry there is a strong public interest in more transparency and it needed to go the whole way through the system.

“We don’t have a problem. If we disclose private health insurance management salaries, we should do that for all of the suppliers, the big private hospitals, the medical companies, etcetera.”

“Another key aspect of disclosure was around transparency about savings from reforms to the prostheses list,” Dr Crombie told Bupa News after the hearing.

“We were asked whether we’d pass on all the prostheses savings that the Federal Health Minister has negotiated. One of the ideas was to get the Australian National Audit Office in."

"From our point of view if someone wants to come in and have a look at the figures, they absolutely can. We’ve got nothing to hide.”

When asked by the committee if the proposed discount for young people to join PHI early would make a difference, Dr Crombie said it was a challenge for the whole industry.

“We’ve got to do more to encourage young people in terms of emphasising the health and wellbeing aspects of insurance.”

Senator Dr Richard Di Natale also raised the issue of complaints about health insurance.

Bupa’s head of Health and Benefits, Adam Longshaw, told the inquiry Bupa is committed to assisting customers who might want to make a complaint.

“Bupa has become much more transparent in terms of telling consumers their options if they aren’t happy.”

COMPARATOR SITE FEES SURPRISE SENATOR

Dr Crombie mentioned Bupa has concerns about comparator websites like iselect for the reason they take a proportion of a person's health insurance premium fees as payment.

“If I go to one of those sites and type in my details, you’re telling me they’re getting up to 30% of my first year’s premium?” asked Senator Dastyari, who promised to look into the process.

“They never make that clear to customers," replied Dr Crombie.

"That’s a huge amount of money going off the table that could be used for health claims. From our point of view if you’re going to have a system that discloses to consumers you should actually get that out so people can make judgements,” he said.

We continue to negotiate in good faith with the Unions. Our latest offer includes an 11.25% wage increase over three years, and protection of penalty rates including weekend loadings. This offer is higher than the CPI and average Australian wage increases.

The ANMF has not accepted this offer, nor have they supported us passing on an immediate pay rise to our people while we continue to negotiate.

We respect the right of employees to take protected industrial action and we have ensured the safety, health and wellbeing of our residents is not impacted.

We’re disappointed though the Union felt this level of industrial leverage was warranted, given we are negotiating in good faith.

Sadly, two of our residents have died as a result of contracting the virus.

We express our sincere condolences to the families of these much-loved residents.

In the event of an outbreak we always follow the Department of Health’s guidelines and recommendations to manage the issue and have detailed policies and procedures in place to minimize the potential spread of virus.

This includes asking staff to stay home when they are unwell and requiring medical certificates as clearance for staff with the virus to come back to work, strict handwashing procedures and asking relatives and the public to avoid visiting the home.

We’re always fully staffed to meet the care needs of our residents and with the health and wellbeing of our residents as our number one priority, our dedicated care team ensure all of our residents receive the best possible care during these times.

Bupa’s Information Services and Digital teams recently came together to give innovation a ‘jump start’ at our inaugural InSpire Day event.

See how Bupa is inspiring innovation and creativity and transforming the way we work.

While innovation can range from improving our daily processes to creating a new business model, InSpire Day focused on how we can change our mindset and ways of working so that we’re not afraid to bring our ideas to life.

The 24-hour challenge, saw over 14 teams deliver their pitch and work on solutions they thought would be 'Better for Bupa'. Chatbots and Artificial Intelligence were some common themes, with all teams aiming to improve our customer and people experiences.

Wallace Yim, Head of IS Strategy and Architecture, shared his thoughts on the day.

Bupa employee Brett Eitzen, was thrilled with his team's success, saying, "It was fantastic to be part of a team working on a customer problem, and to have the opportunity to use technology to do things differently."

The team now feel inspired and understand the importance of bringing innovative thinking to our everyday work; learning some new technologies and, finally, getting to know each other a little better.

Thanks to Microsoft, DXC, Optus and Avanade who were also on hand to offer support.

It relates to Bupa’s international health insurance division, ‘Bupa Global’.

Bupa Global is the division of Bupa which handles international health insurance mainly for customers who work overseas or travel on a regular basis.

It is important to point out that this was not a cyber attack or external data breach.

It was deliberate act by an employee in the UK who had no access to customer data for the Bupa Australia Health Insurance business, which is kept on separate systems.

The data does not include financial or medical data, however our Bupa Global team ( based in the UK) is taking this incident very seriously and has been contacting affected international health insurance customers.

We encourage anyone who is concerned to visit www.bupa.com/bupaglobalcustomerupdate where more information is available.

Worldwide, 547,000 Bupa Global private health insurance customers are affected. Bupa Global has 1.4 million international health customers in total.

Of these, we believe approximately 19,595 are Australian Bupa Global customers, who we are contacting.

The Huddo Family Stand is a joint initiative by the Hawthorn Football Club and Bupa to recognise Peter Hudson’s legacy as a Tassie hero, a Hawks Club legend and a valued Bupa employee.

The Huddo Family Stand will host Auskick families at every Hawks game in Tasmania from today.

“Family is something that’s close to my heart, and it was support from my family which helped me succeed in life – on and off the field.”

^{Hawks Club legend Peter Hudson and Isaac Allan, 6, of Launceston. Pic Tess Brunton, Launceston Examiner}

The naming of the stand was for the Hawks and Bupa to honour Peter Hudson and his legendary status in the AFL game and his enormous contribution to Bupa throughout his 20-year career with the organisation.

“It’s a real honour to be recognised with The Huddo Family Stand. It's been made possible by the Hawks, my former club, and Bupa.”

Over the past 18 years, Bupa has worked closely with Life Be In It, to bring to life the Bupa Kidfit Series, a children’s triathlon series, to get Tassie families out and active together.

It’s something Huddo backs all the way.

“It’s a great investment in the health of the community and has become part of the local fabric here.”

“I’m so proud to work for Bupa, who share my commitment to help make a positive difference to the health of Tasmanian families.”

Bupa is excited to be part of the naming of the stand.

“What better way to bring together three of Huddo's passions – footy, healthy children and family - than by honouring an area that ensures his legendary status will continue to grow for the generations of the future?” says Bupa’s Head of Health & Care Marketing, Marketing, Adrian Baillargeon.

For the record, 12,000 people were on hand to watch the Hawks draw with Greater Western Sydney

In Australia, a baby girl born in 2010 can expect to live to 82 years, yet a baby boy born at the same time is expected to live to 78 years.

Men are more likely to have accidents, develop cancer, or die of heart disease. They also take their own lives at three times the rate of women.

This needs to change.

That's why Bupa supported this week's launch of Men's Health Week 2017. 

This is a global event, led locally by Western Sydney University, community groups and all levels of government.

It aims to raise awareness of the need for men of all ages to look after their physical and mental health.

Rebecca Cross, Bupa's Head of Government, Policy & Regulatory Affairs, spoke at the launch event held at Parliament House in Canberra, along with the patron of Men's Health Week, His Excellency General the Honourable Sir Peter Cosgrove, plus Federal Minister for Health Greg Hunt and Shadow Minister for Health Catherine King.

Video: Bupa's Rebecca Cross at the launch of Men’s Health Week 2017 with patron, the Hon Sir Peter Cosgrove, and the Federal and Shadow Health Ministers.

Bupa is working to support men of all ages to get active and stay connected

When it comes to preventative health, our research shows that our male customers are less likely to schedule regular checkups with their GP, visit the dentist regularly or use fitness trackers.

And they're more likely to experience a serious health episode that requires a specialist or hospitalisation.

Bupa has a role to play in improving health outcomes, and we recognise the importance of a healthy mind and social inclusion in addressing our health challenges as a nation.

This commitment has seen us establish men's sheds in our aged care homes, to better connect our residents through friendship and inclusion.

We're also a long-term supporter of Santos Tour Down Under cycling events because we see the value of families connecting and getting active together.

That's why the Men's Health Week 2017 theme of 'Healthy Bodies, Healthy Minds' resonates so strongly with Bupa.

If you or someone you know is thinking about suicide, call Lifeline on 13 11 14 or 000 if life is in danger (Australia only).

"We congratulate Minister Hunt on his appointment to the health portfolio and look forward to working with him to create an improved health system for all Australians," Mr Bowden said.

"We believe in a strong public health system, supported by a strong private system – it’s a balance that has served our country well for decades.

"Today, however, our health system is facing new and complex challenges. Increasing financial pressure from an ageing population, new and more expensive medical treatments and technologies, increasing use of services and rising consumer expectations - all of this means higher costs for consumers, healthcare providers and governments.

"Amongst other things, we recommend a move away from fee-for-service models for clinicians to outcomes based payments to help reduce current over-servicing and churn."

Mr Bowden also recommended that the Minister initiates a Productivity Commission review of the total private health system and how it interacts with the public system – to improve coordination of health and care services and reduce complexity, fragmentation and duplication.

"Work is underway to reduce waste and inefficiency in the health system, but more is required," he said.

"While we welcomed the Government cutting prosthesis costs late last year, Australians are still unjustifiably paying the highest prices in the world for medical devices. We are asking the Minister for further price reductions, that will continue to be passed on to our customers."

Mr Bowden also congratulated Ken Wyatt on his appointment as Minister for Aged Care and Minister for Indigenous Health.

"We look forward to working with Minister Wyatt to introduce more sustainable aged care funding, particularly for residents with complex care needs."

Ms Power is currently Director of Brand and Health & Care Marketing for Bupa A&NZ, where she has guided the company's brand strategy and helped reposition the company from an insurer to a broad health and care company. She has also been Bupa's key global brand lead, helping all of its markets expand their brand presence, a role she will continue when assuming her new responsibilities on the Bupa A&NZ executive team.

She succeeds John Moore who is moving to Bupa's corporate centre in London to take up a new global customer service leadership role.

Ms Power joined the company in 2013 from Suncorp Group where she held roles including Executive Manager of Direct Life and Executive Manager of Wealth Management and Direct Risk. She also spent five years at MLC working across a range of roles including platform distribution. She was Head of Product and Marketing at Asteron, prior to the merger with Suncorp. She has an MBA from Queensland University of Technology.

Bupa People Director Naomi Attwood said: "Jane brings to the role a great depth of marketing and commercial experience at MLC, Suncorp and Asteron, prior to joining Bupa in 2013.

"More recently, Jane has passionately led our Brand strategy for the past two years, bringing the Bupa brand in our Australian and more recently New Zealand markets to life in a new way."

Commenting on her appointment Ms Power said: "I am incredibly honoured to be given this opportunity to lead a fantastic team that is doing such impactful work for our people and customers.

"As a marketing group we have worked very hard over the last few years to reposition Bupa as a broad health and care company. We know those efforts are making a real difference to the way our customers feel about the brand as a whole.

"For that reason our marketing activity will continue to focus on making that real difference in health and care, particularly delivering on the experiences that are important to our customers and people.

"Platforms such as Health Link are critical to this, helping us create greater engagement with consumers around health issues that matter to them.

"It's an exciting time at Bupa and I'm thrilled to be taking on the role," Ms Power said.

A new Director of Brand and Health & Care Marketing will be appointed in due course.