LOGAN Hospital Auxiliary will have its earning capacity more than halved following a decision by Metro South Health to put the hospital cafeteria out to tender.
The volunteer Auxiliary has run the cafeteria for 29 years, using profits to purchase vital equipment for the Logan Hospital.
Donations have averaged more than $100,000 a year, largely thanks to the cafeteria takings.
President Aron Schroter said the Auxiliary would be lucky to scrape together $30,000 a year from its craft stall and raffles alone.
"At the end of the day the hospital will be the big losers from it financially," he said.
Mr Schroter said the news was disappointing but not unexpected.
"In truth we got to the stage where it was difficult to manage anyway," he said.
"But we would have carried on a bit longer."
Logan-Bayside Health Network executive director Brett Bricknell said the Auxiliary was no longer coping with the pressures of running the cafe.
"The current cafeteria, which has been managed by the Logan Hospital Auxiliary since its creation, has provided an excellent service for many years," he said.
"However it has recently become apparent that it has struggled to meet the growing demand as the hospital has grown."
Mr Bricknell said the number of patients, visitors and staff had increased with the hospital's recent redevelopment.
"This, coupled with Logan's expanding population of families means the cafeteria service needs to be expanded to meet this demand," he said.
"It is appropriate to address this need through a public tender process."
Mr Bricknell said the Auxiliary's trolley service would also be retired.
"This decision does not in any way mean that the hospital does not value the hard work and time of the volunteers who make up the Logan Hospital Auxiliary," he said.
While the Auxiliary was invited to submit a tender, Mr Schroter said the committee decided to bow out gracefully.
