After more than 30 years in nursing, spanning hospitals, aged care, and community health, a nurse from the Sunshine Coast discovered her true calling not within sterile wards, but on the streets, where connection, compassion, and consistency often serve as the most powerful forms of care. “I was always a relationship-based nurse,” she explains. “I loved spending time with people.” This passion for human connection ultimately led her to leave the traditional healthcare system behind and establish One Bridge, a mobile outreach service that delivers healthcare to people experiencing homelessness and social disconnection.
The turning point came in 2018, as she observed an increasing number of individuals entering emergency departments with complex social needs, homelessness, loneliness, and suicidal ideation, only to be discharged back into the same conditions. A chance visit to a palliative care fundraiser changed everything. There, she watched a film about a doctor in India who rescued dying people from the streets and provided them with dignity in their final days. The film concluded with a quote from Martin Luther King Jr.: “Life’s most persistent and urgent question is, ‘What are you doing for others?’” This question resonated with her deeply. She resigned from her job, packed a nursing kit into her car, and began offering care directly to those who needed it most.
Today, One Bridge is a lifeline for many. The team, easily recognised by their bright blue shirts, provides trauma-informed, non-institutional care in parks, community centres, and housing precincts.
However, their work goes far beyond simple blood pressure checks and wound care. “Sometimes, people just want to sit and talk,” she explains. “Or even just be near another human without having to talk.” The team addresses chronic conditions such as diabetes, heart disease, and dementia while also offering mental health support, hepatitis C testing, skin cancer checks, and harm reduction supplies. They connect clients with nurses and general practitioners, covering medication costs when necessary. “People are often forced to choose between food and medication,” she says. “We strive to remove as many barriers as we can.”
The impact of poverty and trauma is evident in the people they serve. “People can age 20 years earlier,” she explains. “We see individuals in their 40s who appear to be in their 60s because of their life circumstances, often living without access to care, in pain, and without social support.” For many, trust in the healthcare system has been broken.
“We’ve encountered people who haven’t had a health consultation in 30 years,” she notes. “Sometimes, simply holding space for someone can be the first step toward rebuilding trust.” The team shows up consistently, even when faced with initial indifference. “Eventually, someone might say hello, and that feels like winning the lottery.”
Beyond day-to-day care, she advocates for systemic change. As a Churchill Fellow, she travelled to seven countries in 2023 to study global health equity models. Now, she is pushing for a national Health and Social Access Scheme in Australia that integrates social determinants of health into the biomedical model. “We need a permanent funding model,” she says. “Life is hard enough as it is. People have been fighting since childhood. They’re tired. We need to consistently show up for them.” With outreach clinics now operating in Queensland and New South Wales, her vision is to take One Bridge national because everyone deserves to be seen, heard, and cared for, regardless of their circumstances.
