May 25, 2021
There have been 116 births at the new Kingaroy Hospital since it opened in December last year, Darling Downs Health Board chair Mike Horan AM told guests at the hospital on Tuesday,
There have also been 8814 presentations at the new Emergency Department.
“The team at Kingaroy has provided 9595 outpatient appointments; 711 outpatient telehealth appointments; 399 elective surgeries and 53 emergency surgeries,” Mr Horan told a community consultation lunch held at the hospital on Tuesday.
“The new hospital also includes a CT scanner, and 1204 CT scans have been provided up until April, which is a tremendous result as previously these would have been done in Toowoomba or through the nearest private provider.”
The lunch coincided with the monthly meeting of the Darling Downs Health Board.
“We hold every second monthly Board meeting in one of our rural facilities so it’s good to be here in Kingaroy for our May meeting,” Mr Horan said.
“We’ve seen how well the new hospital is running, and in terms of benefits to the community the figures speak for themselves.
“This state-of-the-art facility is a great addition to the region and will continue to provide excellent healthcare to the people of the South Burnett for decades to come.”
Mr Horan said Stage 2 of the redevelopment was also progressing well.
“You can see Stage 2 taking shape as we get closer to completion of the project, which is scheduled for late this year,” he said.
“This final stage of the redevelopment, which includes the main entrance, will accommodate a new and expanded renal dialysis unit, new outpatient services, new medical records department, and a new coffee shop. It is moving ahead on time and on budget.
“The structural steel frame for the ‘boomerang building’ is now in place and piling for foundations of the new link building is under way, so we can really get a feel for how the finished product will look.”
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Member for Nanango Deb Frecklington has been assured by Health Minister Yvonne D’Ath that all patient showers inside the new Kingaroy Hospital are draining correctly.
This follows a Question On Notice from the Nanango MP on April 21 to the Minister citing concerns that patient showers were not draining correctly, with water entering the ward area.
Patients had also complained to Mrs Frecklington there were no mirrors in some bathrooms.
Minister D’Ath said Darling Downs Health was aware there was “a water pressure issue which may be attributing to water entering the bathroom space and this is being investigated as part of the standard defect rectification process”.
Ms D’Ath said all the hospital shower en suites were designed in accordance to guidelines and building codes, and certified by an independent building inspector.
She also said all patient bathrooms have mirrors installed.
