What is happening?
What is going on and what has happened so far?
01
Your community are fighting for you
The fate of the hospital is in the hands of the courts.
The court action aims to force the board to adhere to the rules of the constitution of the association and transfer the asset to a valid beneficiary. The following is a statement of facts included in the claim.
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1) The board has failed in their duty to inform members of transactions with financial consequences above $200,000.
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2) The board elected to terminate a contract with the State Government of South Australia without the permission of the members and without a sufficient number of board members. Termination of this contract destroyed the financial viability of the hospital.
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3) The board closed the hospital and terminated staff without the permission of the members incurring significant redundancy payment costs.
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3) Supporters of the proposal to merge encouraged residents of James Brown Memorial Trust (aged care residents) and the community to join as members of the hospital for the express purpose of transferring the assets of the hospital (valued at more than $6million) to James Brown Memorial Trust without proper community consultation or appropriate due diligence.
4) The communication to the public is alleged to have included false and misleading statements including but not limited to:
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claiming that the proposal to gift the asset to James Brown Memorial Trust was a "merger" which it was not.
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claiming that there had been an investigation into the viability of the building - no evidence was produced.
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claiming that there was no alternative to transferring the asset to James Brown Memorial Trust - numerous options were presented and investigated by concerned members.
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attempting to defame those who made enquirers by suggesting that their intention was to build housing on the site - which is false.
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claiming that organizations such as the Freemasons of South Australia and Northern Territory seek to control the site - which is baseless and false.
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5) The James Brown Memorial Trust is, we believe, not a valid beneficiary for the hospital assets as it provides a specific service to a small group in the community while a hospital provides health services to the entire community.
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The asset should either be retained by the people of McLaren Vale and surrounding districts or transferred to a valid recipient who provides health services to everyone.
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Members of your community with the resources to do so are FULLY FUNDING costly legal action to ensure that health services remain in YOUR hands. They will fight to make sure you, your parents and your children have access to local health care and an ambulance station that remains close by.
02
Read our detailed summary
We prepared a report analyzing the statements made by the board and enquirers made by members of the community. Members who join us can access original copies of the documents included in this report.
In short, they had no basis for their decision, failed to communicate alternatives and ultimately. The vote to gift the assets failed. The board promised to resign but did not, instead they and others launched a deceptive campaign encouraging more than 1000 members to join the hospital to vote for a merger.
03
False claims and a 10 year lease
Immediately after the failed vote to transfer the assets to James Brown Memorial Trust supporters of this proposal made false statements claiming that the people who opposed this wanted the site for housing. Knowing that these statements were absurd (this would require 75% of the members to support it) a tenant of the site published and paid for advertising warning residents and encouraging them to join as members to close the hospital and transfer it.
04
1000+ members vote for a merger
When the hospital closure was first announced there were 65 members in the association. Many had lapsed their memberships during Covid. A small group of younger, newer community members joined offering to help, donate, raise money or at least investigate alternatives. Membership grew to 150 people, many were not allowed to participate because a member must have been in the organization for more than four weeks before they can vote. The first vote, asking if members supported closing the organization and transferring the assets failed.
Miraculously, within 45 days more than 1,000 members joined and a new vote was called for a "merger". Residents of Kalyra aged care facilities were directly solicited to join as members and given proxy forms which were in support of a "merger" which would transfer the hospital to James Brown Memorial Trust (Kaylra). We know this because residents spoke to other members and their adult children about being pressured to sign up, being told the membership form was for a petition amongst other things.
James Brown Memorial Trust CEO - Sara Blunt
05
An invalid vote
With more than 700 proxy forms (pre-cast votes) at the special general meeting more than 80% of members voted to "merge" the hospital with Kaylra.
The following date the medical practice announced their 10 year lease on the site (a contract of significant financial value) and their intention to retire.
Legal action commenced stating that the vote was invalid. That action is before the courts.
Was this in the interest of the community? The decision to grant a lease rests with a single person, the chairperson of the hospital board.
06
Where to from here?
Everything we suspected and more was confirmed in court. It's unbelievable and a complete betrayal by the individual board members who have been involved. They have wasted hundreds of thousands of dollars to force the transfer of the hospital to Kaylra.
Get involved, join us, hold the board to account. Ask questions. Demand answers.
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