June 21 2026
Calvary Kogarah's Motor Neurone Disease Clinic marks 25 years
This year, Calvary Health Care Kogarah's Motor Neurone Disease Clinic marks 25 years of specialist care and support for people living with MND and their families.
Mother-of-three, Kristy Parker, 31, of Punchbowl has lived with the everchanging challenges of Motor Neurone Disease for the last three years.
In that time, Ms Parker has learnt a lot about the disease and has come to know the MND Clinic, at Calvary Health Care Kogarah Hospital well.
With the onset of her symptons at 27 and diagnosis at 28, Ms Parker never suspected she had developed the progressive disease that affects the upper and lower motor neurons that control how her brain will communicate with her muscles.
“It took more than a year to get the diagnosis, and nothing prepared me for the shock of finding out I had MND, at such a relatively young age,” Ms Parker said.
MND challenges the patient with myriad assaults, often simultaneous, on basic daily tasks, mobility, speech, swallowing and respiratory function.
“I thought I had tendonitis in my wrists, and then maybe carpal tunnel issues, which lead to physiotherapy treatment and then visiting neurosurgeons,” Ms Parker said,
“I knew something wasn’t quite right, when I went to pick up a guitar and couldn’t hold the strings down.
“While doing all my tests, I would google my symptoms and came across MND and just thought that was too dramatic. I thought it was ridiculous when I actually found out I had it.
“Going to Calvary Health Care Kogarah has been great, not just from a clinical perspective but because with all the different services in one space, you don’t have to repeat yourself.
“There is nothing ‘textbook’ about MND. The Calvary Health Care Kogarah staff are willing to help and you can tell they actually care.
“From a social perspective, it helps to hear about others lived experience too,” Ms Parker said.
According to Calvary Health Care Kogarah physician, Dr Matthew Gardiner, who was around 25 years ago at the Clinic’s inception, the recent high-profile cases of MND in the media have assisted greatly in lifting the disease’s profile.
“The most common form of MND is amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS). The terms MND and ALS are often used interchangeably,” Dr Gardiner said.
“MND is a disease with an opaque pathogenesis and complex manifestation.
“People from all walks of life, and different age groups, from 25-97 years of age, have received care and treatment for the disease.
“Every single case is different and deserving of a bespoke management plan,” Dr Gardiner said.
“Yet, sadly, with the exception of the rare Primary Lateral Sclerosis (PLS) variants, none have survived.
“Which begs the question – why does the clinic exist, when death is a near-term certainty?” Dr Gardiner asked.
“The answer that many Calvary Health Care Kogarah staff would agree, with speaks to caring for an important patient group and their very different needs and the Calvary mission of ‘Being for others’,” he said.
Run as a polyclinic, it has been multidisciplinary from inception and consists of both palliative and rehabilitative medicine, as well as a social worker and a Clinical Nurse Consultant (CNC).
A much larger ‘virtual’ polyclinic comprises a broad range of nearby medical, nursing and allied health sub-specialities, that have developed considerable expertise in this area.
“There must be some intrinsic value this specialised polyclinic provides to our consumers and their loved ones, as they keep returning,” Dr Gardiner said.
