Warrnambool Base Hospital's $3.7m emergency department works

The undersized ED has presented problems in recent years as the region's population has grown with the flow of patients through the department becoming a major issue and causing lengthy wait times.

SWH chief executive officer Craig Fraser said in August that works were scheduled to start in late 2023, but the start date has pushed out to early 2024.

The hospital is in the early stages of a $384 million redevelopment that will build a brand new emergency area on Timor Street, but the hospital management decided an interim measure was necessary. A state government spokesperson said early site preparations for the major redevelopment would begin in December 2023 and the overall project was "on track for completion in 2027".

The government advertised a $280,000 project manager job for the major project in early October and a spokesperson said a builder would be appointed "in the coming weeks".

Meanwhile, the interim renovation of the existing ED will expand the cramped waiting room as well as creating a new triage and reception area to make the space more comfortable for patients and more functional for staff. There will also be new amenities for patients with extra toilets, televisions and vending machines, following complaints about the lack of food from patients waiting hours to be seen by a doctor.

Within the medical area there will be four new treatment and consultation spaces, along with medical rooms and staff spaces, which will enable the medical staff to implement a fresh "model of care" with a fast-track zone for patients arriving by ambulance.

At the height of the COVID-19 pandemic the ED came under huge pressure from increased presentations, with staff concerned about having to treat patients in corridors. The issues persisted into 2022 as wait times hit record highs through the back half of the year and some patients complained of wait times topping 10 hours.

In response to the problems SWH appointed an emergency department operations manager in December 2022 and wait times have dropped by more than 40 per cent in 2023.

The transition of Warrnambool's GP Respiratory Clinic into a Priority Primary Care Centre in July 2023 has also helped take pressure off the ED.

The health service has hired Melbourne construction company Bowden Corporation to do the renovation, with the project scheduled for completion by the end of 2024.

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