"One thing is sure. We have to do something. We have to do the best we know how at the moment... If it doesn't turn out right, we can modify it as we go along."

- Franklin D. Roosevelt

Hopeworks Foundation began as a simple vision 10 years ago. At that time, my Dad had just passed away from Motor Neurone Disease, I was left caring for my Mum who had Dementia and Parkinson's Disease, and was simultaneously dealing with my own recovery from a traumatic brain injury. I found that information alone helped little when faced with the reality of being a carer - and needing care myself. And to compound that, the support available was limited and hard to find.

I met and talked with many people with various conditions, as well as to carers and families. The unanimous feeling I was left with was that there was an enormous gap in the healthcare system where certain needs were being viewed as secondary concerns, when compared with the physical problems many faced. But speaking from experience, it is the little everyday things that determine quality of life, and help balance the treatment and rehab many of us are faced with. And so the idea was born...

What people needed were three things:

• Ongoing education and information that targets not only the ‘patient’ but the families and carers as well;
• Support services not met by the existing healthcare system;
• A place where they can contribute and engage with other people and services – an interactive space.

So, where do we start this journey? 

Over the past two years we have been compiling information and resources that everybody can access in our Brain Hub library. With your help, we can keep adding to this and create a single space where you can find and share information; a single space where you can access all there is to offer in the NZ marketplace, as well as access to the latest international resources. So please, email us with anything you have found useful – great Doctors, great services, your experiences or resources - whatever it is that has helped you move forward. With your support, we believe we can create something that truly makes life easier and happier for us all.

For those who have yet to meet me, here are a few things I have been involved in...

The full NZ Girl article can be read here.