Community
20 August, 2024
Welcome ED upgrade
SIX more beds, state-of-the-art equipment and 42 new staff are part of Cairns Hospital’s $26.4 million emergency department (ED) expansion unveiled by Queensland’s Premier Steven Miles last week.
After two years of works, the ED expansion, part of the Queensland Government’s $500m investment in health infrastructure in Cairns, will be able to better fulfill the demands of the growing region.
With larger resuscitation bays, a refurbished waiting area, six new beds for a total of 53 ED beds, an X-ray station and new staff, the waiting times are expected to reduce.
Health Minister Shannon Fentiman said the expansion would address the population’s growth and its stress on the ED.
“Firstly, I want to thank the staff at the Cairns Hospital for delivering great care for those who needed it most while expanding an ED, is no small feat, and I’m so pleased that we have this expanded ED open for this rapidly growing part of Queensland,” she said.
“We also have X-rays as part of the ED which makes things easier, a new family room, new acute treatment spaces and an upgraded waiting room.
“This is just stage one of the expansion. We have a new redevelopment of 62 beds here at the hospital as well as a brand-new surgical unit with 32 beds.
“In the last 12 months the median ED wait time has improved by three minutes compared to last year, so people are waiting less despite the live construction site, so the more critical patients were seen within two minutes. We should take our hats off to the hospital staff.”
Premier Steven Miles said the expansion was only one part of the improvements to come in the Far North. “The Cairns ED expansion is ready to open, and this is just one of so many hospital builds and expansions across Queensland, including massive expansions in Cairns and the Far North,” he said.
Cairns and Hinterland Health and Hospital Service (CHHHS) chief executive Leena Singh said it was a vital component to improve services at ED.
“This was an expansion and a refurbishment and what this has allowed us is to bring in new models of care to improve our flow, our waiting room area, so this refurbishment allowed us to make it a much nicer experience for our patients,” she said.
“These are six extra beds that get turned over a lot quicker because they’re not your main ward beds but ED beds which are there for temporary care.”
