By BRIDGET SCOTT
ONE of Cranbourne’s two South-Eastern Centre Against Sexual Assault services has been forced to close with staff being moved to a new facility in Dandenong.
Manager Carolyn Worth from Monash Health said the closure of the service at the Integrated Care Centre was due to “practical reasons”.
“Cranbourne was closed due to the multi-disciplinary centre opened in Dandenong.”
Ms Worth said this new centre was a “large outfit” which required about 100 staff.
“We needed enough workers there that they weren’t overwhelmed,” she said.
“When you first take on something that large you don’t want a small team.”
The service at the Community Information and Support Service will continue.
Ms Worth said these centres were first started in central Melbourne in 1977, before moving to Clayton, which had been identified as the centre of population growth.
However Ms Worth said that times had changed and operators recognised the need for these types of centres to expand further out into the south-east into areas such as Cardinia shire, the City of Casey and the City of Greater Dandenong.
These integrated care centres run in partnership with Monash Health and other services.
Ms Worth said the two centres in Cranbourne would have averaged about 1000 appointments each year which she added was “considerable”.
“We see a substantial number,” she said.
Ms Worth said staff hadn’t received any backlash following the closure of the Cranbourne centre, but said the women at the remaining one will notice more of a work load.
“The two women there will be busier,” she said.
