The focus of South Gippsland Hospital is to meet the needs of people in the Corner Inlet community and surrounding district requiring assistance in the following areas, with an emphasis on how people access and move between these services:
- Acute hospital care
- Rural birthing services
- Rural emergency health services
- Primary health care
- Management of chronic episodic illnesses
- Integrated health promotion and illness
- Illness Prevention & Health Promotion
- Aged care
An ongoing review of the physical infrastructure of the hospital is being undertaken. An emphasis will be placed on sourcing the funding necessary for the construction of a new building to meet the needs, not only of acute care patients but to enable the provision of services to meet all the needs outlined above. To this end SGH has entered in to an Area Based Health Planning process involving the Department of Health and the other three key health service providers in the South Gippsland region. An agreed service plan will then assist to inform a master planning process.
In the meantime, a review of facilities infrastructure leading to upgrading and/or expansion in line with the rolling five year Capital Development Plan is being undertaken. This Plan will take into account the health needs of the community by providing services efficiently and effectively in the following areas and will utilise appropriate benchmark data obtained from similar agencies:
- Acute hospital care
- A day procedure room and recovery centre
- Emergency care, including a treatment room
- Palliative Care
- Radiology
- Supply
- Primary health care, including a conservatory and outdoor area
- Aged care
South Gippsland Hospital will continue to source and/or clearly identify the funding required to support the provision of infrastructure for services as identified in the Capital Development Plan. Our primary focus will continue to be firmly on retaining acute beds and broadening our reach in primary care to meet the needs of our community. South Gippsland Hospital will maintain strong links with local general practitioner clinics and work with them to ensure that there are sufficient numbers of skilled general practitioners to support and maintain optimal acute care services. Key strategic partnerships will be forged and nurtured with the other health and aged care providers in the region.
South Gippsland Hospital will retain our rural birthing services to meet our community’s need and expectations in accordance with the Department of Health’s Birthing Services Framework. We will guarantee compliance with the DoH guidelines for low risk and intermediate risk admission categories by ensuring:
- Skilled and credentialed doctors are available
- Skilled maternity nursing staff are available
- Pre and post natal care is available
- Ongoing educational and practice requirements are in place
- Adopting a ‘shared care’ model for maternity services
South Gippsland Hospital will retain our Emergency Level 2 rating. Staff will be encouraged to engage in continuing professional development opportunities to ensure the maintenance of their skills and knowledge. Annual competency check-off will be required to maintain the Level 2 rating under the proposed guidelines for service provision and standards of care. This includes demonstrated staff proficiency in each highly skilled area and in the Australian Triage Scale emergency presentation assessment.
South Gippsland Hospital accepts the focus of Government funding towards population health models of care. We will ensure social, economic and health data will be given full consideration in the planning of services which can be provided in the home or community. The Community Health Centre will be then developed in parallel with service needs to accommodate a range of services to meet the health needs of the community. This will include ongoing review of physical facilities so that all staff and clients can be accommodated comfortably; ensuring meeting rooms for chronic illness and other clinics are given consideration; and a conservatory area with a linked outdoor area under shelter. Priority will be given to management of chronic illness integrated with health promotion plans and illness prevention strategies.
South Gippsland Hospital will work with Prom Country Aged Care in investigating and developing the concept of expanding aged care services as part of its community health program. The feasibility and benefits of having all facilities within a ‘health precinct’ is supported.
This will incorporate acute care, community health, aged care, day surgery, ambulatory care and providing access to any other models of care which would improve the health status of the community with an adjacent medical clinic. Consideration will include economies of scale as well as staff development and education opportunities and strategies to minimise bed block of acute beds with patients who are classified as needing residential aged care.