What are the new projects?

The new projects funded to commence this financial year are as follows:

• Complete refurbishment of an existing 30 bed ward on the 3rd floor of the existing East Block of the Hospital,
• Significant refurbishment of another 30 bed ward on the 1st floor of the same block.
• Operating Suite – this project includes:
  - expansion of the Post Anaesthetic Care Area (Recovery Room) to accommodate additional patients post surgery,
  - commissioning of a 4th operating room,
  - construction of a dedicated ECT suite,
  - expansion of the pre-surgery patient holding area, and
  - upgrade of staff administration areas.
• Construction and commissioning of a new Dialysis Unit

1. Refurbishment of Wards

Work is well advanced for the complete refurbishment of the 3rd floor 30 bed ward. It is anticipated that this ward will become operational in mid to late July 2008. The ward will incorporate general type patient bedrooms and facilities, together with two (2) dedicated bariatric rooms for obese patients, and a negative pressure isolation room for patients requiring isolation for airborne infections, such as tuberculosis, chicken pox, and measles – giving the Hospital a total of 3 negative pressure isolation patient bed rooms.

Refurbishment works for the 1st floor ward are anticipated to commence in October 2008. This ward will incorporate medihotel beds for those patients needing low level support care prior to, or post an acute admission; and Rapid Assessment Medical Unit (RAMU) beds which will be available  to provide comprehensive care for patients requiring a short acute admission.

2.  Operating Suite

The work for the Operating Suite project has commenced and is expected to be completed mid November 2008. The expansion works for the PACA, and the commissioning of the 4th operating room will enable the Hospital to increase its surgery throughput. The construction of a dedicated ECT suite will provide patients and staff with state of the art facilities for ECT therapy.

3. Dialysis Unit

A new haemodialysis unit is currently being built In Ware Crescent, Ringwood East, opposite the Hospital’s Emergency Department. This facility will care for patients requiring dialysis (blood filtering and “cleansing”) as a result of chronic kidney disease.

The Dialysis unit is due to open August/September 2008, with chairs opening in a staged fashion. This service is a new facility for Maroondah Hospital.

Adult Mental Health Project

The first new 25 bed adult mental health inpatient unit has been completed and is now operational. Demolition of the “old” West Ward is now complete, and excavation has commenced for the construction of the second new 25 bed inpatient unit. The second inpatient unit is expected to open mid 2009.

Refer to the Eastern Health Mental Health website for ongoing details with regard to this project.

Building Sites                 

To ensure the safety and well-being of all patients, staff and visitors to the Hospital we ask that all comply with all the construction restrictions that are in place.

Normal Operations

Whilst building is being undertaken the Hospital will continue business as usual, and it anticipates that disruptions to normal operations will be kept to an absolute minimum.

We apologise for any inconvenience that may be caused during the construction/works stages.

Contact

The contact person at Maroondah Hospital for the Acute Program redevelopment projects is Paul Crockford, Manager Patient Relations/Redevelopment. Should you have any comments or queries please forward them to him via:

Email:   paul.crockford@easternhealth.org.au      or

Contact the Hospital Reception – (03) 9871 3333, and have Paul paged on pager 0068, business hours Monday to Friday (excluding public holidays).

Refer to the Eastern Health website for contact details with regard to the Adult Mental Health project.

Paul Crockford

MANAGER – PATIENT RELATIONS/REDEVELOPMENT