Central Highlands Rural Health

23/04/2026

We’re excited to support six early learning services participating in Smiles 4 Miles in 2026, with Aussie Kindies Creswick and Early Learning Victoria Wirmal (Clunes) joining the program for the first time.

Smiles 4 Miles is an initiative of Oral Health Victoria that supports early learning services to promote oral health for children and families through three key messages: Eat Well, Drink Well and Clean Well.

To learn more about Smiles 4 Miles and how the program supports oral health promotion in early learning settings, visit: https://www.ohv.org.au/oral-health-programs/smiles4miles

For more information about Smiles 4 Miles locally, please contact the Population Health team at pophealth@chrh.org.au.

21/04/2026

A Chief Health Officer alert has been issued as dangerous mushrooms are appearing in gardens and parks across Victoria.

Key points:
◾️ Some varieties, including death cap and yellow-staining mushrooms, are highly toxic and can be fatal
◾️ Cooking, peeling or drying does not make them safe
◾️ There is no home test to tell if a mushroom is safe to eat
◾️ Mushrooms bought from supermarkets and greengrocers are safe
◾️ Avoid picking or eating wild mushrooms
◾️ Remove mushrooms from your garden using gloves and dispose of them in general waste

If you think you or someone may have eaten a wild mushroom,
call the Poisons Information Centre on 13 11 26 (24/7 Australia-wide)

In an emergency, call Triple Zero (000)

👉 More info: https://go.vic.gov.au/4svhTa5

Poisonous mushrooms: the facts behind the headlines.

Dangerous mushrooms like death cap and yellow-staining mushrooms are starting to appear in gardens and parks across Victoria. Consuming a death cap mushroom may result in death. Here is what to know to keep yourself and others safe:

• Cooking, peeling or drying these mushrooms does not remove or inactivate the poison. Mushrooms purchased from a supermarket, greengrocer or other reputable source are safe to eat.
• There is no home test available to distinguish safe and edible mushrooms from poisonous mushrooms.
• Remove any mushrooms growing in the home garden by wearing gloves, carefully placing them in a bag, and disposing of them in a general waste bin.
• Because of the risks involved, Victorians are strongly advised to avoid picking and eating wild mushrooms.

If you think you or someone may have eaten a poisonous wild mushroom don’t wait for symptoms to occur:

📞 Call the Poisons Information Centre on 13 11 26 (24/7 Australia-wide)
🚑 In an emergency, call Triple Zero (000)

More info: https://go.vic.gov.au/4svhTa5

08/04/2026

Ever wondered what our Population Health team gets up to? Now is your time to find out!

Sign up to our Population Health Newsletter for updates and to see what fun things they get up to!

Sign up here: https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/pophealthnews

07/04/2026

🌍 World Health Day 2026 🌍

Today, we recognise World Health Day and this year’s theme: Together for health. Stand with science.

At Central Highlands Rural Health, this message strongly aligns with our Best Care goals, particularly our commitment to making decisions based on the best available evidence. It’s about ensuring the care we provide is informed, safe, and grounded in what we know works.

We also take a moment to thank those at the forefront of science whose work continues to drive breakthroughs and advancements in healthcare. Their dedication is helping to shape a future with better treatments, improved care, and stronger health outcomes for all.

03/04/2026

📣 Urgent Care available 24/7 in Kyneton and Daylesford 📣

With some GP clinics closed for the Easter break, you can still access timely care close to home.

If you or someone you care for needs urgent medical attention, our experienced nursing teams can assess and treat a wide range of urgent health concerns.

📍 Kyneton Health Urgent Care Centre
📞 03 5422 9900
➡️ 7-25 Caroline Chisholm Drive, Kyneton. Present at the nurses’ station or use the after-hours security buzzer at the front entrance.

📍 Daylesford Health Urgent Care Centre
📞 03 5321 6500
➡️ 17 Hospital Street, Daylesford. Press the buzzer at the dedicated entrance to be let in.

In a life-threatening emergency, always call 000.

31/03/2026

Seeing Through the Haze at Daylesford Primary School!

Over the last three weeks, Sam visited year 5 & 6 classes at Daylesford Primary to participate in the Seeing Through the Haze Education Program. This program runs through what a v**e is, how the to***co industry markets them to young people and plays out scenarios with the students to help make informed decisions when they are exposed to v**es in the community and when heading to senior school.

It was very impressive to hear the knowledge the students already had about the harms of va**ng and see through the ‘haze’ of how the industry targets and wants young people to take up the habit.

26/03/2026

We're pleased to share our Autumn Community Newsletter.

This edition is packed with news, community information and photos from our organisation over the last few months.

We welcome you to dive into the pages to read about what we’ve done recently for your local community.

Happy reading!

👉 www.chrh.org.au/articles/autumn2026communitynewsletter

25/03/2026

Central Highlands Rural Health was honoured with the Excellence in Collaboration Award at the Annual Health Service Awards on Tuesday 3 March, recognising the organisation’s work in meeting the Healthy Choices: Policy Directive for Victorian Public Health Services.

CHRH received this award for the team’s successful multidisciplinary collaboration to meet the Policy Directive targets across five campuses. Achieving this milestone required strong coordination across teams, working through a range of operational challenges to ensure 100% compliance of the Healthy Choices targets for 2025.

Health Promotion Officer, Laurey Sherren, attended the awards ceremony online to accept the award on behalf of CHRH.

In addition, Wendy VanderPol (Hotel Services Manager), Howard Bradfield (Support Services Manager), Jemima Hill (Dietitian) and Laurey Sherren were nominated for the Healthy Choices: Policy Directive Local Champion Award, recognising their collaborative efforts in implementing the Policy Directive at Central Highlands Rural Health in 2025.

This recognition highlights the dedication and teamwork across the organisation in creating healthier food and drink environments for staff, visitors and the wider community.

18/03/2026

What are you hungry for?
A jam donut? A warm cup of coffee? A toasty with really good cheese?

At Central Highlands Rural Health, we love food and the role it plays in our wellbeing and our community.

Like breathing, swallowing is something most of us don’t think about. It’s a reflex that’s essential to everyday life. On average, we swallow between 500 and 700 times a day. Around three times an hour during sleep, once a minute while awake, and even more often during meals. We swallow food, drinks, medicine and saliva.

For people who have trouble swallowing, everyday things like eating and drinking can become difficult. It can lead to poor nutrition and dehydration, pneumonia, and a reduced quality of life.

Our Speech Pathology team works with people in the community who experience swallowing difficulties. They can assess swallowing and develop a plan to help people enjoy their favourite foods and drinks safely and with confidence.

If you, or someone you care about, is finding it hard to eat or drink, a Speech Pathologist may be able to help.

Get in touch with our Access team:
E: access@chrh.org.au
P: 03 5321 6539

15/03/2026

This week is Advance Care Planning Week.

It’s a reminder that planning ahead isn’t just about finances or legal documents. It’s about your health, your values, and the care you would want if you couldn’t speak for yourself.

An advance care plan helps your loved ones feel confident they’re honouring your wishes. It also helps your healthcare team provide care that reflects what matters most to you.

You can start by thinking about what’s important to you, who you would trust to make decisions on your behalf, and what treatments you would or wouldn’t want.

Your GP can guide you through the process and help you formally document your preferences. If you’d like support to begin, book an appointment with your GP to start the conversation.

For more information, please visit:
👉 www.advancecareplanning.org.au

12/03/2026

Central Highlands Rural Health staff recently came together at our Daylesford campus to learn more about the work of The Orange Door and how we can continue strengthening support for people experiencing family violence in our community.

We were pleased to welcome Dee Honeychurch and Jess Lanza from Family Safety Victoria, who shared insights from their experience working in the family violence sector and spoke about how The Orange Door connects women, children and families with specialist support.

Family violence has serious and lasting impacts on health and wellbeing, particularly for women and children. As a health service committed to equity, we recognise the importance of improving access to specialist support and creating safer pathways to care.

We look forward to engaging more with The Orange Door and Family Safety Victoria in the future as we strive to strengthen supports for the Hepburn Shire community.

10/03/2026

Thanks to the incredibly supportive crowd at ChillOut, generous online donations, and the support of The Royal Daylesford Hotel, Central Highlands Rural Health can now purchase a children’s resuscitation cart for the Daylesford Urgent Care Centre.

On Saturday afternoon the Royal hosted Songs for Scrubs, a fundraiser held as part of the ChillOut celebrations. Locals and visitors came together for an afternoon of music, dancing and community spirit, all while helping raise funds for equipment that will support our clinicians to care for children in emergency situations.

A big thank you to Cam, Jody, Jo, Sophie and the Royal team for getting behind the event and supporting our staff on the day.

Events like this show how strongly the community values its local health service. When people come together in support, it highlights the important role rural health services play for families across the region.

Thanks to everyone who attended or donated. Our goal was $3,000 and in just four hours we raised more than $3,600. We are thrilled with the support.