PRESS RELEASE: Among The Trees Celebrates World Environment Day by Reflecting on One Year of Saving Timber From Landfill

On this year’s World Environment Day, Among The Trees, a leading local supplier of reclaimed timber based out of Marrickville, Sydney, is reflecting on its mission to help preserve the environment while providing high-quality timber products. The company recognises that protecting the planet is not an individual’s responsibility, but it is still something that everyone can contribute to.
World Environment Day, observed on June 5th, encourages individuals, organisations, and governments worldwide to take action to protect the planet. Among The Trees is proud to play its part by providing an alternative to new timber products that contribute to deforestation and waste.
Reclaimed timber has many benefits, including reducing the amount of timber waste that ends up in landfills, promoting sustainable forest management, and providing an opportunity to utilise rare and unique timber species. In addition, the appearance of reclaimed timber is increasingly sought after, as consumers look for materials that are not only more ethical but tell the story of their history across this continent and beyond.
In its first year of operation, Among The Trees saved an estimated 65 tonnes of timber from landfill, comprising of hardwoods and softwoods from Australian forests and abroad, ethically salvaged from hundreds of different sites including homes, warehouses, universities, and more. The company aims to increase that amount with the help of its customers, students of their hand tool woodworking courses, and the wider community.
“We believe that everyone can make a difference in protecting the environment, and we’re proud to contribute in our own way,” said Sara Buchner, Marrickville local, and one of four founders of Among The Trees. “Our products offer a sustainable option that allows our customers to build with quality timber while also helping the planet.”
Among The Trees recognises that while big polluters and global corporations are responsible for the vast majority of climate and environmental damage, our everyday decisions can still play a small part in slowing this change, and encourages everyone to take action to create a more sustainable future.
For more information on Among The Trees and its mission and range of reclaimed timber products, visit www.amongthetrees.com.au, contact 0481358733 or [email protected].

Links:
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/amongthetrees.sydney/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/AmongtheTrees.Sydney/

PRESS RELEASE: Silverstone receives Development Application approval for advanced life sciences facility on Butterfield Street in Queensland’s largest health precinct, Herston

Brisbane, Queensland – Silverstone Developments’ development application (DA) for a life sciences building at 37-41 Butterfield Street, Herston, has been approved by Brisbane City Council, achieving a significant milestone for the project, named ‘Brisbane Advanced Research Centre’.

The greenlit building will accommodate approximately 11,700 square metres of purpose-built life sciences, research, medical technology, and education accommodation in Queensland’s largest health precinct, Herston.
Silverstone Managing Director Troy Daffy said “We are pleased to have received development approval for this landmark project, allowing us to provide a state-of-the-art building that expands on the world-class facilities at the adjacent Royal Brisbane and Women’s Hospital (RBWH).

“A priority of Silverstone’s strategy is to increase the availability of high-quality laboratory and biomanufacturing space in strategic locations for life sciences and biotech companies.

“The Brisbane Advanced Research Centre will have a standard 2,884m2 floor plate in this instance (approximately 31,000 square feet). The 7-storey building will feature four levels of laboratory space plus a multi-level auditorium above and complementary retail on ground. The facility includes specialist design requirements such as additional plant and services infrastructure, fire systems, industrial loading capacity, hospital-sized lifts and large floor-to-floor heights.

“Brisbane Advanced Research Centre is in a prime location with direct access to the Herston Health Precinct, a key drawcard for organisations looking to leverage off one of the largest integrated precincts in Australia. Tenants will have an opportunity to realise huge synergies with the RBWH, Queensland’s largest tertiary referral, research and teaching hospital with 955 beds,” said Troy.

Herston Health Precinct is a global leader in health, innovation, education, research, training and clinical care and is a collaborative community home to more than 30 health facilities, medical research institutes, universities, and organisations. The Precinct is also home to 13,000 clinical and non-clinical staff, scientists, researchers and students, working together to deliver excellence in health.

Furthermore, the approved facility is located only three kilometres from the CBD and is near start-up communities and creative hubs which help to make up the city’s innovation ecosystem.
Public transport is available in the immediate area, with the RBWH Bus station 300 metres away and the new Cross River Rail Exhibition station to be operational ahead of the proposed facility. Neighbouring the site is Silverstone’s recently completed 354-bay commercial car park, offering further parking for visitors and staff.

The Brisbane Advanced Research Centre will also include state-of-the-art end of trip facilities, a wellness room, ground floor café, and 118 car parking bays to enhance the tenant and staff experience.

The technologically advanced facilities will cater and adapt to ever changing demands of breakthrough scientific research in medical technology, life sciences, and educational applications. The design includes base building engineering solutions that consider the sensitivity and stability requirements of these spaces, such as infrastructure to reduce vibration and smart controls for laboratory isolation.

Silverstone will now look to continue working with key stakeholders with a view to commencing construction.

ENDS

About Silverstone Developments

Silverstone is a Brisbane based private property development and investment company, with an exceptional track record in the Australian market. The company is agile and future-focused, with a commitment to creating value through high-quality assets. They have a strong precedent in delivering healthcare and life sciences, commercial, residential, and retail developments, with a total value of over $900 million completed to date.

For further enquiries, please contact:

Anthony Fanning – Development Manager, Silverstone Developments Pty Ltd
E: [email protected] M: 0409 468 988

PRESS RELEASE: Kim Spillman takes the reigns as General Manager at Midnyte City

Midnyte City announced today that Kim Spillman, Delivery Lead and Organisational Transformation specialist, will be taking on the newly created position of General Manager from 22 May 2023.

“This is an opportunity to flex my skills in leadership, delivery, communication and coaching to help achieve extraordinary outcomes with our clients and the team,” said Kim. “General Manager is a key step towards achieving one of Midnyte City’s strategic goals; having alumni make a positive contribution to the community by starting their own business”.

“Midnyte City has enabled me to voice ideas, achieve optimum performance, provide feedback and foster an awesome culture. I’m humbled to lead us into the next phase and looking forward to continuing to create an environment where others can thrive and share in that experience.”

“I value connection, community and wellbeing, and strive to inspire and motivate others through my actions. We know that delivery, organisational transformation and effective leadership impacts business success and individual health. Therefore, it is imperative that leaders of people get this right.”

Kim has worked with the Midnyte City founding team of Hannah Browne, Ebony Worth, Henrik Axelsson and Melissa Ngau before. She joined Midnyte City in early 2021 and was the first Midnyte Citizen to win the coveted Most Valuable Player (MVP) award that year. Benny Lo took out the honour in 2022.

“Our vision is to be the best technology consultancy in Melbourne,” says Founder and Managing Director, Hannah Browne. “Kim is driven to uplift our clients’ delivery capability and foster continuous improvement. Her coaching will accelerate the team’s professional development through our leadership and commercial skills syllabus, School @Midnyte, feedback club and one-to-one mentoring. This approach stems from our progressive principles and psychological safety, aiming to teach clients and colleagues how to fish, rather than catch fish for them.”

“We are thrilled for Kim’s move from working in Midnyte to working on Midnyte”, says Hannah. “Kim helped forge our shared values of accountability, human-centricity and growth mindset. Her deep Delivery Leadership experience and aptitude for designing and implementing right-size processes make her the perfect person to drive value for our clients and steward Midnyte City through our next chapter of growth.”

Midnyte City is a Technology consultancy specialising in Delivery Leadership, Cloud Engineering, Software Development and DevOps. We are a group of progressive, “hands on keyboards” technologists and delivery professionals who help customers build technology solutions and technology capability.

Clients engage us to bring specialist, high-calibre technologists into their existing teams. We get the work done and share our skills and knowledge with the internal folks throughout delivery. Our focus on outcomes and knowledge transfer helps progressive organisations deliver the right outcomes, quickly and effectively, while building long term sustainability by investing in growing skill and experience within permanent delivery teams.

Our customers are startups looking to scale up and get their product or service to market quickly, scale-ups looking to access specialist skills to grow quickly and enterprise organisations modernising their cultures, systems and processes for customer-centricity, resilience and security.

PRESS RELEASE: Celebrating REMAP – CAPs success on International Clinical Trials Day

Each year, the 20 May marks International Clinical Trials Day, where we shine a light and raise awareness on the clinical trials sector. On this important day, it’s crucial to acknowledge the significance of clinical trials and their vital role in advancing medical research and enhancing patient outcomes worldwide.

Clinical trials have touched the lives of countless individuals, including those who have directly benefited from new treatments discovered through these trials. The impact of these trials on patients and their families cannot be overstated – they have provided hope and a chance for a better quality of life for so many people.

Since 2016, the Australian Clinical Trials Alliance (ACTA) has recognised the remarkable trialists and researchers who improve the health of many Australians through clinical trials each year at the ACTA Clinical Trials Awards: National Tribute and Award Ceremony.

The Awards honour those who design, conduct, and participate in ground-breaking clinical trials and promote the importance of clinical trials and the expertise and complexity of the work involved.

In 2022, ACTA announced the REMAP-CAP trial as the Trial of the Year winner. This Trial uses a novel and innovative adaptive trial design to evaluate multiple treatment options for community-acquired pneumonia (CAP) simultaneously and efficiently. The platform adapted to test multiple treatments for patients with life-threatening COVID-19 infection and has published results for 14 different treatments with these results informing international guidelines. This included the first identification of targeted immune modulation as a highly effective treatment for ICU patients with one life saved for every 12 patients treated. A unique feature of the trial is that it increases the likelihood that trial participants will receive treatments that are more likely to be effective for them.

Professor Steve Webb, ACTA’s Board Chair and the lead Investigator and recipient of the ACTA 2022 Trial of The Year Awards, said REMAP-CAP was honoured to be the Trial of the Year winner.

“When COVID-19 emerged at the beginning of 2020, [REMAP CAP] was able to adapt to answer a series of time-critical questions about the effectiveness of a range of different treatments for life-threatening COVID-19. The results of REMAP-CAP have saved tens, if not hundreds of thousands of lives.

“On average, over the last 300 years, there has been an influenza pandemic every 23 years. We are over halfway to when we can expect the next influenza outbreak. REMAP-CAP is already generating evidence about how to treat the next pandemic better,” adds Professor Webb.

The 2023 ACTA Trial of the Year Awards will be held at the ACTA International Clinical Trials Symposium at the Park Hyatt, Melbourne, 27 – 29 November. The Gala Dinner on 28 November 2023 will host the esteemed award ceremony. Registrations to the Symposium, Awards and Gala Dinner will open in late May.

ACTA CEO Dr Stewart Hay said: “REMAP-CAP is a trial that clearly illustrates the power of collaboration and ingenuity. The speed at which this trial was able to respond to the emergence of COVID is remarkable, as is its significant impact to the lives of many people across the globe.

“As a peak body, ACTA is committed to supporting and advocating for trial teams to ensure they can continue their great work in providing the community with access to life-changing trials.

“It’s essential to mark this day and the many Australian trials that discover lifesaving medical breakthroughs each year. REMAP-CAP is just one example of the vital work and the impact these trials have on a global scale.

“ACTA is looking forward to receiving this year’s Trial of the Year nominations, which are now open. For the first time this year we will be announcing the 2023 winners at our International Clinical Trials Symposium Gala Dinner on 28 November,” Dr Hay added.

About REMAP-CAP
REMAP-CAP – a multi-factoral, multi-intervention, multi-strata Bayesian adaptive trial that is or has tested more than 50 treatments for patients with severe community acquired pneumonia. It is designed to be a perpetual trial with new domains and interventions added as questions in the launch domains are answered, using response-adaptive randomisation to increase the likelihood patients receive better treatments and with in-built translation of results into practice once any intervention is identified as superior.

• Click to watch Professor Steve Webb’s progress on REMAP-CAP since winning Trial of the Year https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X9U5LN0z92o
• Click to learn more about REMAP-CAP https://www.remapcap.org/
• Click to nominate for the 2023 ACTA Trial of the Year https://clinicaltrialsalliance.org.au/latest-news/clinical-trials-2023-national-tribute-and-awards/
• Click to register to attend the 2023 ACTA International Clinical Trials Symposium https://clinicaltrialsalliance.org.au/latest-news/save-the-date-acta-2023-international-clinical-trials-symposium/

Please reach out to Lisa Webbe to arrange an interview with ACTA Board Chair Professor Steve Webb or CEO Dr Stewart Hay.

-ends-

Media Enquiries:
Lisa Webbe
Communications and Events Manager
[email protected]
0423 517 333

PRESS RELEASE: New study reveals Australia’s most Googled laundry problems

Hudstone, an eco-friendly laundry solutions provider based in Australia, recently conducted research on the most Googled laundry-related queries in the country. The results indicate that many Australians are struggling with removing stubborn stains, preventing clothes from shrinking, and dealing with colour bleeding issues.

The top searched topic is stain removal, with Australians seeking advice on how to tackle tough stains such as oil, red wine, grease, and blood. The following are the top searched stain removal queries and their average monthly search volumes:

– “how to get oil stains out of clothes” – 1900 searches/month
– “how to remove red wine stains” – 260 searches/month
– “how to get yellow stains out of white clothes” – 210 searches/month
– “how to get coffee stains out of clothes” – 170 searches/month
– “how to remove old grease stains from clothing” – 110 searches/month
– “how to remove blood stains from clothes” – 110 searches/month

Shrinking clothes is the second most common laundry emergency, with Australians seeking tips to prevent or reverse the damage caused by hot water and incorrect dryer settings. The following are the top searched queries related to shrinking clothes and their monthly search volumes:

– “wool jumper shrunk” – 70 searches/month
– “how to stretch clothes that have shrunk” – 30 searches/month
– “linen dress shrunk” – 30 searches/month
– “can you fix clothes that shrunk in the dryer” – 20 searches/month
– “clothes shrunk in wash” – 20 searches/month

The third most searched topic was colour bleeding issues, with users looking for ways to either prevent or fix it after it occurred. The following are the top searched queries related to colour bleeding and their monthly search volumes:

– “can I wash colours with white” – 40 searches/month
– “white clothes turned grey in wash” – 40 searches/month
– “white jeans turned blue in wash” – 30 searches/month
– “white shirt turned red in wash” – 20 searches/month

Interestingly, Hudstone’s report revealed a 25% increase in laundry-related emergency searches in January compared to the average for the rest of the year.

Some of the less common (but more obscure) searches included “how to remove pomegranate stain,” “how to remove lasagna stains from clothes,” “how to remove coca cola stains from white clothes,” and “how to get washing powder stains out of black jeans.”

It’s clear that laundry-related issues are a common concern for many Australians, and seeking advice and solutions through Google searches is a popular approach. However, it’s important to note that prevention is often the best strategy. Following care label instructions and separating laundry by colour can help prevent many of these issues.

PRESS RELEASE: Australian Belly Dance Convention Bringing Together Dancers Across Cultures

[Brunswick, VIC] – The Australian Belly Dance Convention (ABDC) will be launching 6-9 July 2023 at Brunswick Town Hall, 233 Sydney Rd Brunswick. The convention is expected to attract hundreds of belly dancer enthusiasts and instructors from across the country and New Zealand looking to experience, connect, learn and celebrate what it means to enjoy belly dancing.
For its first year, the convention will feature a wide range of belly dance styles, including classical Egyptian, Fusion, FCBD(R) style, and more. Attendees will have the opportunity to learn from quality facilitators with all levels being accommodated from never danced to seasoned professionals.
In addition to movement workshops, the convention will also offer panel discussions and presentation sessions with industry professionals. Attendees will have the chance to learn about the latest trends and techniques in dance, as well as history, performance skills, body positivity, inclusivity, trauma-informed teaching, influencing and business tips.
“The Australian Belly Dance Convention is not just another festival of dance,” said Amanda, an ABDC committee member. “It’s a chance for dancers from all areas of Australia and New Zealand to come together, learn from each other and celebrate what it means to be a belly dancer.”
A Welcome Dinner will open the convention with a presentation by Indigenous Outreach Projects (https://www.indigenousoutreach.org/) demonstrating how connections can be made across different cultures through dance.
The convention will host two amazing showcases featuring performances from some of the most talented belly dancers in attendance. Both performances are open to the public and are sure to be a highlight of the convention weekend.
The end of the convention weekend will be marked with an amazing marketplace, open to the public, featuring some amazing small businesses, and an open stage of performances by local and interstate student groups and upcoming professionals.
Tickets for the convention are available now and can be purchased through the convention’s website. For more information about the convention, including a full schedule of events and a list of instructors and panellists, visit the convention’s website at https://bellydanceconvention.com.au
About Australian Belly Dance Convention.
The Australian Belly Dance Convention is an organization dedicated to promoting belly dance education and providing opportunities for belly dancers and instructors to grow and develop their skills. The organisation comprises a small committee of individuals who host various events throughout the year, including workshops, fundraisers, and performances.

PRESS RELEASE: Water Cremation for Pets. The Eco-Friendly Alternative in Pet Aftercare.

15th May 2023

Water Cremation for Pets. The Eco-Friendly Alternative.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Perth, Western Australia – With local governments banning backyard burials and an average size dog emitting approximately 45kgs of CO2 during traditional Flame Cremation, greener alternatives, such as Water Cremation, now offers Pet Parents a gentler process, with minimal impact on the environment.

If you haven’t heard of Water Cremation, you are not alone. Though patented back in 1888, it was only made available to the Aftercare Industry in 2011. The process has been adopted for both Pet and Human Aftercare, in the US, Canada, UK and South Africa. It made worldwide headlines in 2022, when South African Archbishop Desmond Tutu, was cremated by water.

Water Cremation, or Alkaline Hydrolysis, uses a gentle flow of 95% water and 5% alkali, to mimic what would take place in nature, where the body is reduced to its essential elements, leaving behind the calcium phosphate (bone), which is prepared and placed into an urn before returning to the family.

For many years, burial and flame cremation have been the most common and traditional animal aftercare options, however, they are far from environmentally friendly. Water Cremation offers an alternative that;
• Uses 90% LESS energy,
• DOES NOT burn fossil fuels,
• DOES NOT EMIT harmful greenhouse gases,
• DOES NOT RELEASE chemicals from animals that have been euthanised and buried,
• DOES NOT CONTAMINATE soil with bacteria as a result of decomposition,
• Remains are 100% clean, sterile and pathogen-free and can be SAFELY returned to the earth and
• The remaining water is a sterile solution which can nourish soil and support plant growth.

As we become increasingly aware of our pet’s Carbon Paw Print they leave during their life, so too, is the importance of our decisions in their Aftercare.

###

About Blue Leaf Water Cremation
Blue Leaf Water Cremation is a WA Family Owned and Operated Business, offering a personal level of service, during a difficult and delicate time. As long-time pet parents, we wanted to offer a gentler and more respectful alternative in Pet Aftercare, that was also environmentally friendlier than traditional options. To learn more, visit www.blueleaf.net.au

Media Contact
Catherine McKay
Tel. 0419 580 369
Email: [email protected]

PRESS RELEASE: Beddown calls for urgent measures to address homeless life expectancy

Beddown which is part of a national charity organisation inCommunity Inc, has launched its Change47 campaign to raise awareness and funds towards supporting six new Beddown venues across Queensland. The campaign, which runs until June 30th, aims to address the shocking average life expectancy of 47 for homeless Australians and the worsening housing crisis.

According to Beddown founder Norm McGillivray, “I lost my father, who was homeless on the streets of London, at the age of 42 from a heart attack. It’s shocking that in all these years, the situation for homeless people hasn’t improved.”

The Change47 campaign offers multiple ways to get involved, including the “Give47” campaign, which encourages people to donate $47 to Beddown, with the goal of raising $4.7 million and opening six new venues. The campaign also features a “Fun”raiser option, where people can turn their staff meetings, schools, clubs, or home events into fundraisers that support the homeless.

Beddown provides safe and secure pop-up accommodation for those who are sleeping rough, as well as access to a range of health and social services. Johno, a former Beddown guest, shares his experience, “The Beddown experience is epic! Nowhere else in Brisbane do you get the same kind of treatment. It’s like a big family here.”

With homelessness growing at an alarming rate over the last four years in Queensland, it is crucial to find solutions for the most vulnerable. Based on the best available data, it is estimated that around 90 people died in Queensland while experiencing homelessness in 2020.

“We all start and end our day in the same place, a comfortable bed. Why should so many vulnerable people every night have to try and survive on the streets, on park benches and concrete? We can change lives and save lives, starting with a safe and comfortable place to sleep,” says McGillivray.

To learn more about the Change47 campaign and to support the cause, visit the newly launched website, www.change47.org.au, and use the hashtag #Change47 to help spread the word.

Ends.

To arrange an interview contact:
Norm McGillivray (Founder – Beddown) on 0491 278 835
Karen Furnivall (Marketing and Communications Manager) on 0468 946 222
Or email [email protected]

About Beddown
Beddown is part of inCommunity Inc., a national charity organisation based in Queensland, that aims to provide innovative solutions for Australians who are homeless or sleeping rough. Beddown activates and repurposes under-utilised, vacant or empty spaces into short-term accommodation for the homeless.

PRESS RELEASE: TGA approved Australia’s First Combined Triple Rapid Antigen Test for RSV, Flu A/B, and COVID

o A new TGA-approved rapid antigen test will add Respiratory Syncytial Virus (RSV) to the list of viruses Australians can self-test for with a single swab.
o The self-testing nasal swab diagnoses three different viruses accurately within 15 minutes.
o Developed by Touch Biotechnology, the combination test is available now and will help combat the spread of COVID-19, Influenzas A and B and Respiratory Syncytial Virus (RSV).

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: As Australia heads into flu season, health experts are warning the public about the looming ‘Triple Threat Virus’. The risk of severe illness due to the flu, COVID-19, and Respiratory Syncytial Virus (RSV) co-infections is a growing concern. However, Australians can now self-test for all three following the Therapeutic Goods Administration’s (TGA) approval of a new Triple Combo Rapid Antigen Test.

Resembling a mild cold, RSV can cause breathing and lung problems like bronchiolitis and pneumonia. Concerningly, it is very infectious and largely effects over 65s with vulnerable immune systems(2) and children under three years are at the highest risk of serious illness.(3)

In response to the growing concern for co-infections and to help protect vulnerable community members, Australian-based developer and manufacturer, Touch Biotechnology, has released the First TGA-approved multi-virus diagnostic testing kits in the Australian market (ARTG Number: 408459). This cutting-edge diagnostic solution will empower people to take control of their health by providing unparalleled convenience, sensitivity, and accuracy in detecting RSV, Flu A/B, and COVID-19 infections at home.

Akin to the RAT tests we’ve become accustomed to, the Triple Combo Test boasts a sensitivity rate for all three viruses and an accuracy rate of over 98%. Utilising a similar process, through a single nasal swab, results are available within 15 minutes, allowing users to obtain accurate and timely information about their health status.

Australians are recommended to take a Triple Combo Rapid Antigen Test for RSV, Flu, and COVID-19 when they feel unwell, have any symptoms or have been in contact with someone who has these viruses. The RSV, Flu A/B, and Covid Rapid Antigen Test for Self-Testing will be available to purchase at retail stores and online. For more information, please visit: www.touchaustralia.com.au

About Touch Biotechnology

Founded in 2020 in Sydney, Australia, Touch Biotechnology is one of the leading manufacturers and developers of advanced antimicrobial protection solutions and rapid in-vitro antigen tests. It is dedicated to developing solutions that are evidently effective, and continually demonstrates a commitment to building products that have a positive impact on human lives, while remaining socially and environmentally responsible.

Media Contact:
[email protected]
Ph: 07 3160 3370

About the Research & Citations

1. immunisationcoalition.org.au/resources/rsv-guide
2. health.nsw.gov.au/Infectious/factsheets/Pages/respiratory-syncytial-virus.aspx
3. childrens.health.qld.gov.au/fact-sheet-respiratory-syncytial-virus

PRESS RELEASE: Rosemary Crossley has died

It is with great sadness and a heavy heart that the Anne McDonald Centre Committee of Management announce the death yesterday of its Director and co-founder, Rosemary Crossley.
Dr. Rosemary Crossley, AM, PhD, died on 10/5/2023. She was 78 years old. She became famous as a therapist with and advocate for people with little or no functional speech.
Crossley was born on 6/5/1945 at Horsham. She was educated at Morongo school and went on to the Australian National University. After a brief period in the Australian Public Service she began working at the Victorian Spastic Centre with people with severe handicaps.
In 1974 she was hired as a playleader at St. Nicholas Hospital, a Parkville institution for severely handicapped children run by the Victorian Health Commission. It was there that she met Anne McDonald. McDonald had severe cerebral palsy, could not walk, talk, or feed herself, and had been diagnosed as severely retarded.
Crossley decided to see if she could find a way for McDonald to communicate by pointing – first at choices on a communication board, then at word blocks, then letter blocks, and finally on a letter board.
This brought Crossley into conflict with her superiors at the hospital, and eventually McDonald asked to leave. The Health Commission refused to allow this, and were taken to the Victorian Supreme Court on a very rare habeas corpus action. Anne won the action, and left St. Nicholas to live with Crossley and her partner Chris Borthwick for the next thirty-two years.
“Annie’s Coming Out”, Crossley and McDonald’s account of their struggle, was an international bestseller and went on many school curriculums. It was later made into a movie of the same name, which won the AFI Best Picture award in 1984.
The court case, the book, and the film exposed the shortcomings of St. Nicholas Hospital and of the system that had created it, and led directly to the closure of the hospital a few years later – the first step in the deinstitutionalisation of care for people with disabilities in Victoria.
In 1986 Crossley founded the DEAL Communication Centre in Caulfield. The Centre began by working mainly with people with cerebral palsy, but soon found itself taking on clients with other diagnoses – Down Syndrome, Rett Syndrome, developmental disabilities, and, increasingly, autism. In case after case Crossley was able to establish a means of communication with the client, demonstrating that their diagnoses of intellectual disability had been made in error.
Crossley described her methods as Facilitated Communication Training, involving coactive hand-on-hand movement at the beginning of the training process. While she always aimed for eventual independent communication, the method was criticised for allowing communicators to impose their messages on their partners.
Nonetheless, many people who Crossley had helped communicate went on to graduate from schools and universities.
When Anne McDonald died in 2010 DEAL changed its name to the Anne McDonald Centre, but the work went on. iPads, in particular, have spread hand-pointing skills more widely, and newer clients were better able to communicate more independently sooner.
Crossley wrote books (including “Speechless”, 1997) lectured at universities and presented papers at conferences around the world. She was awarded an AM in 1986 for services to people with severe communication impairments and took a doctorate in communication from Victoria University in 1998. She was admired for her indomitable spirit, her determination, and her ability to empower others in advocating for themselves and for the people they loved.
Dr. Crossley died of cancer in the Royal Melbourne Hospital on 10/5/2023. She was working till the end: in the hospital, she was able to assist a nurse who had a foster son with communication handicap with books, boards, and iPad apps.
Together, Crossley and McDonald changed the history of disability. Crossley’s life work of teaching, researching, and advocating for people with little or no functional speech has improved the lives of thousands of the most vulnerable people in many countries and over five decades. Her sharp intellect and wicked good humour will be missed. The world has lost an important voice speaking out for the rights of people with disabilities.

For further details contact
Leane Leggo,
0438 546 080
[email protected]
Or
Chris Borthwick,
0487 683 988
[email protected]