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 Logo between 2016 and 2024 | |
| Formation | 2005 |
|---|---|
| Founders | Jane McGrath Glenn McGrath |
| Headquarters | North Sydney, New South Wales |
Chairman | John Conde |
President | Glenn McGrath |
| Glenn McGrath John Conde Tracy Bevan Terry Brown Christine Holman Glenys Beauchamp | |
| Website | www |
TheMcGrath Foundation is abreast cancer support and educationcharity inAustralia, which raises money to place McGrath Breast Care Nurses in communities acrossAustralia and increasebreast health awareness. The charity was founded byAustralian cricket playerGlenn McGrath and his English-born wife,Jane McGrath, in 2005, following Jane's initial diagnosis and recovery from breast cancer.[1] Jane died on 22 June 2008 at the age of 42.[2]
The McGrath Foundation was created after Jane McGrath was diagnosed with breast cancer, and the mission of the foundation was based on her experiences with her nurses at that time.
Since 2005, the McGrath Foundation has placed 233 McGrath Breast Cancer Nurses in communities acrossAustralia, and has supported over 143,000 families.[3][4]
The majority of all McGrath Breast Care Nurses are in rural and regional areas.[5] People experiencing breast cancer can directly contact their nearest McGrath Breast Care Nurse, whose support is then provided completely free of charge. The McGrath Foundation needs to raise approximately $420,000 to place each McGrath Breast Care Nurse in the community for a three-year period.[6]
In 2008, the Australian Government pledged $12.6 million to the McGrath Foundation to fund McGrath Breast Care Nurses in 44 communities through to June 2013.[7] This commitment was furthered in 2013 with the announcement of a $18.5 million grant to continue funding 44 existing McGrath Breast Care Nurses in communities nationally as well as the placement of up to an additional 10 full-time equivalent McGrath Breast Care Nurse positions.[8] This was extended for a further four years, in November 2016, confirming the positions of 57 Government-funded McGrath Breast Care Nurses until 2021.[citation needed]
The first goal of the McGrath Foundation is to place specialist McGrath Breast Care Nurses wherever they are needed inAustralia.
McGrath Breast Care Nurses are highly qualified nurses specifically train to supported families experiencing breast cancer. The role of a McGrath Breast Care Nurse is varied and broad. From the time of diagnosis through to referrals and follow up, McGrath Breast Care Nurses play an important role in the psychosocial, emotional and physical wellbeing of patients and their families.[9]
The first tertiary-based distance education program for breast care nurses was pioneered byLa Trobe University in partnership withCancer Council Victoria in 1997.[10]
McGrath Breast Care Nurses usually have a background inoncology, breast care or women's health and sometimes evenpsychology. They also require a postgraduate qualification[11] in breast care nursing or cancer nursing, which can be studied at the Australian College of Nursing[12] and La Trobe University.[13] The McGrath Foundation offers four annual scholarships through theAustralian College of Nursing.[14]
The second aim of the McGrath Foundation is to promote breast education among Australians. At only 31 when she was first diagnosed with breast cancer, Jane McGrath was passionate about empowering people to take control of their health by being breast aware.[15]
The McGrath Foundation's breast education programme was developed to ensure everyone in Australia is aware of the importance of breast health, are confident in detecting changes, are knowledgeable about the risk factors for breast cancer and are checking their breasts regularly.
According to the Foundation, the programme "aims to empower young women in particular to look after and know their bodies, and to take action that promotes their health and wellbeing".[16] It includes resources for schools, the workplace and the community with workbooks, presentations and videos available for free download from the McGrath Foundation website.
In 2008, the McGrath Foundation partnered withCommunity First Credit Union and developed the McGrath Pink Visa to raise money for McGrath Breast Care Nurses. The McGrath Foundation has a strong corporate partnership programme, and is aligned to several well-known brands that provide fundraising and awareness support.[17]
The McGrath Foundation has over 40 corporate partners includingCricket Australia.[18]
McGrath also reached out to former Ashes adversaryAndrew Strauss, who played in a Pink Test himself while captaining England's successful 2010-11 Ashes campaign, after Strauss also found himself widowed by cancer. Andrew's wife Ruth, who he had met inSydney, had passed away from a rare form of lung cancer on 29 December 2018 after Strauss had stepped down as England's director of cricket to look after her. Ahead of the 2019 edition of the Ashes inEngland, it was announced that Day 2 of the Lord's Test would benefit the Ruth Strauss Foundation in much the same way that Day 3 of the Sydney Test benefits the McGrath Foundation.[19]
The McGrath Foundation used to have a relationship with thegreyhound racing industry. After the allegations oflive baiting were made in the media in 2015, the McGrath Foundation ceased the relationship.[20]
The McGrath Foundation holds events and community fundraising initiatives.
Tracy Bevan was best friend to Jane McGrath and is the official ambassador, as well as a director, of the McGrath Foundation. The McGrath Foundation has had many Australian entertainers and sporting personalities supporting their cause as "Foundation Friends",[24] including:
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