A spokesperson for South West Healthcare said the Thursday public holiday would not change scheduled surgeries at any of its services, while there would be a "slight reduction" on Friday because that was a planned public holiday.

St John of God Ballarat and Warrnambool chief executive Alex Demidov said all surgeries and appointments would proceed unchanged.

Since the public holiday announcement our hospital has been receiving concerned calls from patients and doctors wanting to understand whether scheduled procedures will occur. Many have made arrangements based on the confirmed procedure date and are very keen to proceed," Mr Demidov said.

"To reschedule these procedures now would be distressing for our patients and may have other adverse outcomes. In that context we are planning to proceed with planned patient activity, including procedures, as normally scheduled."

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