Murray Lodge Supported Accommodation

I lived at Murray Lodge from 2010 to 2016 after suffering mental health issues resulting from a relationship breakdown with my life partner in Sydney. After a fallout with my stepmother and father in Caboolture because of my sexuality, I found myself in a psychiatric unit at Caboolture Hospital, homeless. I was referred to Murray Lodge because I had nowhere else to go. Murray Lodge saved my life. The staff at Murray Lodge saw a need for me to undergo counselling. Looking back, I was suffering from shock and unresolved grief. I was lost. I was referred to the Royal Brisbane & Womens' Hospital for psychotherapy with a psychiatrist, at which point was I placed on anti-depressants and new anti-convulsant medication to control my epilepsy.



Murray Lodge linked me in with Unting Care disabilty support staff, who gave me invaluable advice, support and social companionship, connecting me to organisations specializing in getting disabled people into study and work. Without Murray Lodge, I would not have completed a diploma in Aged Care Certificate III at Charlton Brown in Fortitude Valley, nor would I have re-gained my mental health.



The food service at Murray Lodge is quite good, with a menu ranging from lasagna to beef stroganoff; to fish, chips and salad on a Friday afternoon; with hot porridge with milk and honey in winter for breakfast. The average hot lunch at Murray Lodge is sheppard's pie (mashed potato with minced beef and steamed vegetables) in winter, along with a sausage sizzle BBQ with salad and ice cream every six weeks (the BBQ is organized by a local Christian charity).



The other residents at Murray Lodge were an eclectic bunch of what I like to refer to respectfully as colourful misfits. There are people living with intellectual disabilities, with a number of mainly middle-aged men living with addiction, mental illness and depression. The average resident at Murray Lodge is male, is in their late thirties-early forties, suffers from a chronic form of mental illness and is a loner. I'd say that 80% of the residents at Murray Lodge are smokers.



There are a few wheelchair-bound men at Murray Lodge and several elderly and frail people who live there who otherwise would be homeless if it were not for Murray Lodge. There are a number of young men who live at Murray Lodge - schitzophrenics - who exhibit concerning behaviours like psychosis, paranoia, social withdrawl and substance abuse - but you come to realise that Murray Lodge is a safe haven for the socially disadvantaged - people who have nowhere else to go. In a way it's sad that places like Murray Lodge exist, but Murray Lodge is a close community that needs to exist nonetheless.



There are allied health care services such as UnitingCare and Footsteps that provide emotional support and social companionship for those residents with social anxiety/physical disability and mental health issues link in with the broader Brisbane community. Support staff that assist residents usually build long-term relationships with their clients, and regularly help them attend medical appointments, Centrelink reviews, 1:1 social outings and trips to hospital. As most of the residents of Murray Lodge have little to no connection with their family members, support workers come to mean a lot to Murray Lodge residents.



Blue Care nurses attend Murray Lodge every second day to help those clients with high emotional dependence and physical frailty to shower themselves. These nurses also encourage their clients to develop healthy hygiene habits and good personal grooming techniques.



All in all, Murray Lodge is ideal for the average disabled person who intends to stay in supported accommodation long-term, who thrives on routine and who needs the guidance, support and convenience of having all their needs met by staff who see them every day.