Donate

Up until the start of 2020, the Chronic UTI Australia Incorporated organisation, and all our related advocacy activities, have been completely funded by our small team of dedicated, volunteer committee members. As demand for chronic UTI information is quickly growing, and our organisation is evolving in response, there is now a need for sustainable funding to enable us to keep up with the growing demand. We are now fully endorsed to accept charitable contributions to help with our advocacy activities. This does not mean we are expecting chronic UTI sufferers to foot the bill.  We will explain exactly what this means to the chronic UTI community, so please keep reading.

Why have we become a registered charity?

Chronic UTI Australia Incorporated is a registered not-for-profit organisation established to advocate in Australia for awareness, recognition, education, research, and improved testing and treatment for ALL forms of urinary tract infections (UTI). All advocacy activities since 2017 have been funded by our small and extremely dedicated committee. By becoming a registered Australian charity, it means we can apply for a range of government and philanthropic grants to help fund our ongoing activities.

What does becoming a registered charity mean?

Being endorsed by the Australian Charities and Not-for-Profit Commission (ACNC) as a Health Promotions Charity (HPC) means Chronic UTI Australia Incorporated’s principal activities are recognised as promoting information for the prevention of chronic UTI in Australia. It also means we are responsible and accountable for how we manage all funds received and we are legally required to comply with annual financial reporting obligations with the ACNC and other overseeing bodies. These bodies ensure Australian charities do not misuse or abuse funds. Having charity status also means we have been approved to receive charity tax concessions from the Australia Taxation Office (ATO), including endorsement as a deductible gift recipient (DGR). Put simply, our funds won’t get gobbled up by taxes and any donations made to Chronic UTI Australia Incorporated can be deducted from your income tax. All donations will be issued a written receipt by return email.

Who are we seeking funds from?

Primarily, we have sought charity status so we can apply for a range of government and philanthropic grants to fund basic, out-of-pocket administrative costs (ie website hosting and maintenance, insurance, industry memberships, graphic design etc) and future advocacy activities. We will happily accept donations from the public, but we DO NOT expect people in our chronic UTI community to fund Chronic UTI Australia Incorporated’s activities. Our committee is made up completely of chronic UTI sufferers and care givers of chronic UTI sufferers—we know firsthand how costly this condition can be when trying to access an accurate diagnosis and appropriate treatment, as well as income that is lost from being unable to work or study, or missing out on career advancement opportunities. Despite what chronic UTI sufferers have been through, many still want to help support our vital role in raising public awareness of chronic UTI and patient advocacy by giving whatever they can afford. We will gratefully accept donations to help accelerate the important advocacy work our organisation is responsible for, and driven to deliver, for our chronic UTI community.

Are there organisations we won’t accept funds from?

The answer is YES! Chronic UTI Australia Incorporated has developed an ethical fundraising policy to avoid potential conflicts of interest and to ensure our integrity and independence is never compromised. We have identified organisation we will not accept funds from, which includes: pharmaceutical companies; health and nutritional supplement companies; medical and surgical supply companies; medical device manufacturers; medical testing companies; medical and scientific researchers and associated universities.

What are our funding goals?

Chronic UTI Australia Incorporated has developed an action plan that has identified potential activities to help reach our goals. However, a percentage of our activities are dependent on successful fundraising. If you would like to know more about our planned activities, please contact us. If you would like to know more about us and our mission and goals, please visit our About Us page.

Does anyone at Chronic UTI Australia Incorporated get paid?

Absolutely not.  We are a small and proactive team of volunteers who have chronic UTI, or carers of family members with chronic UTI.   Our firsthand experience means we fully understand the challenges faced by others who experience recurrent and chronic UTI, and the problems we encounter in Australia.   Everyone on the Chronic UTI Australia Incorporated team works or studies fulltime and bring a range of skills and experience to the group.  We have proven we can make progress while running off the smell of an oily rag.  However, to achieve our goal of putting chronic UTI on Australia’s public health agenda, we do need funding and we would love more people to join us.

HOW ELSE YOU CAN HELP

Sharing Skills, Contacts and Resources

If you would like to help out or become involved in other ways, we are always looking out for people with skills, resources or contacts who can further our advocacy work. If you think you have something to offer, please contact us to discuss your ideas.

Become a Committee Member

If you are interested in being involved with our committee, please contact us for more information.

Individual Advocacy

If you would like to become proactive in your own way, throughout the year we will be sharing information on suggested organisations to contact and write to, along with other helpful and proactive approaches you can take.  Please keep checking back here for updates.

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