The New South Wales and Victorian Governments are joining forces to deliver world-class health facilities for people in and around Albury-Wodonga, partnering to deliver a $558 million redevelopment of the Albury Base Hospital.
Stages 1 to 3 of this major project will provide a massive boost to patient care – improving services and making it easier for locals to get the care they need in one location.
NSW and Victoria will each invest $225 million, adding to $108 million already invested by the New South Wales and Commonwealth Governments towards the $558 million project.
The redevelopment will include a new Clinical Services Building to be built at the existing Albury campus, bringing all services together at a state-of-the-art site, expanding the range and complexity of services offered to provide the best care for people who live on the border.
It will deliver critically important health care, including an intensive care unit, maternity services and paediatric services – providing the best and most modern hospital for the community.
“This $558 million project will transform healthcare for people in the Albury-Wodonga region, ensuring world-class facilities are within reach to those living on either side of the border for generations to come,” New South Wales Premier Dominic Perrottet said.
“This is a great example of co-operation across political lines to achieve the best result for those in and across the state border – creating a state-of-the art healthcare hub to modernise services for the region and attract a skilled workforce to work within it.”
The site will include a new helipad with direct access to the ICU and the emergency department, neonatal care and new operating theatres for more surgery, as well as a new 32-bed mental health ward to replace the Nolan House Mental Health Unit and the expansion of outpatient and specialist spaces for treatments such as dialysis.
The major investment will also help the hospital become a regional health hub with the ability to attract and train skilled and specialised medical, nursing, allied health and support staff.
“As the border region continues to grow, we’ll make sure healthcare workers and local communities on both sides of the Murray can have the facilities they need,” Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews said.
“We’re working collaboratively with the NSW Government to give the growing Albury-Wodonga community the very best of care, now and into the future.”
Part of the first stage of the project includes building a new multi-level carpark on an adjacent site, allowing the new Clinical Services Building to be constructed on the site of the current carpark.
Currently hospital services in Albury-Wodonga are split across two campuses, with some services – such as anaesthetics – duplicated at both sites, while others require patients to travel back and forth between campuses to get the care they need.
This investment will mean local families can now get the care they need, all in the one location.
“The people of Albury-Wodonga have been calling for new, state-of-the-art facilities and this is what we will deliver,” New South Wales Minister for Regional Health Bronnie Taylor said.
“The NSW and Victorian Government are also in negotiation to deliver a new and improved health service management agreement, setting us on a path towards establishing Albury-Wodonga as a major regional health service.”
The existing Albury Base Hospital will continue to operate throughout construction. Once the hospital services currently being delivered at the Wodonga campus have been transferred to the Albury Base Hospital.
The NSW and Victorian Governments will work with the community and Albury-Wodonga Health to redevelop the Wodonga campus into a facility that will meet the needs of the community.
Construction on the new hospital is expected to commence in 2024 and be completed by 2027, with the works creating more than 1,000 jobs – boosting employment opportunities for border locals. Both governments will work closely with Albury Wodonga Health to ensure full services continue to operate at the existing hospital during construction.
Earlier this year, construction started on the new emergency department and short stay unit at Albury Wodonga Health’s Albury campus – which includes 42 treatment spaces, a specialised resuscitation hub, paediatric treatment area, acute treatment area, and multiple triage rooms with their own accompanying waiting rooms.
