Work will start next year on a $2.5 million refurbishment of Dungog Hospital.
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The work is the largest change to the hospital for at least two decades in its rich, 126-year history.
Where once the hospital featured 32 beds with a full maternity wing, paediatric unit and theatres, now the 15 beds are occupied for around 47 per cent of the time during the year.
This is in line with the shift to concentrate health care in the home rather than a hospital environment, said the hospital's Site Nurse Manager Nicola Churms.
“This is a reflection of the future of health care and the way health care is moving,” she said.
Ms Churms said the project was exciting for both staff, patients and the community.
“This reflects that Hunter New England Health and the government are willing to invest and maintain this hospital which is very much needed,” she said.
“Even though there is a new $450 million hospital going down the road, we are so far away, we still need the services that are provided here.”
The finishing touches are being put to the refurbishment plans before Hunter New England Health puts the job out for tender.
It is hoped the work can start in April or May next year with the expectation for a 12-month build.
All clinical spaces in the hospital will be renovated and updated. This will increase the services the hospital is able to provide such as podiatry, community health and women's health.
“The hospital’s Nurse Practitioner will be able to do a lot more procedures rather than having to send ladies down to East Maitland,” said Ms Churms.
“That’s a big win for us.”
The wards will be demolished and centralised to reflect contemporary nursing practice. Ms Churms said both she and Hunter New England Health were mindful of some of the beautiful features of the original hospital, which would be re-used where possible.
The emergency department will be re-configured and the new triage area will have a dedicated room so that appropriate assessments can be undertaken and then the flow of the patient will be improved because the nurse will either take them straight in to the emergency department or into the treatment room or the waiting room.
One new feature of the hospital will be the addition of an isolation room, Ms Churms said.
“We will have a closeable room we can use to protect vulnerable groups, predominantly paediatric patients and it can also be used as an infection control room in case we need it,” she said.
A new four bed palliative care wing will be built on hospital land at the rear of the hospital and have a custom built carer’s area.
