 | CASEY SPECIAL CARE NURSERY OPENS ITS DOORS
From the Premier
Tuesday, 19 October 2010
More families with newborns in Melbourne’s southern suburbs will have access to care closer to home with the opening of the expanded special care nursery at Casey Hospital.
Premier John Brumby and Health Minister Daniel Andrews today opened the $5.2 million nursery that has been expanded to cater for an extra 1000 births a year.
“Our Government is committed to providing high-quality maternity services to all Victorians,” Mr Brumby said.
“The staff at Casey Hospital’s special care nursery make a huge difference to the lives of some of Victoria’s youngest patients everyday.
“It’s important our hardworking doctors and nurses have the support and facilities they need to provide even better care to acutely ill babies and that is why we delivered $5.2 million to expand the special care nursery to meet growing demand.
“The expansion will help keep mothers and their babies together by reducing the need to transfer newborn babies requiring extra care to other hospitals. It will also allow for babies with extra needs born at other hospitals to move closer to home with their mothers.”
Casey is one of the fastest growing municipalities in Victoria. Casey Hospital recorded 1405 births in 2008-09 – a 13.3 per cent increase on the previous year.
Mr Andrews said the new nursery had tripled the number of cots at the hospital.
“The significant expansion will greatly improve access to maternity services for the rapidly growing communities in the outer east,” Mr Andrews said.
“This expansion will deliver 14 additional special care nursery cots, increasing the number of cots to 20.
“It also features consulting suites with areas for health promotion, education and support for families with seriously ill babies.”
The project created 31 constructions jobs.
Mr Brumby said the opening of the expanded nursery at Casey Hospital follows the Government’s announcement to provide $250 million to expand Monash Children’s at Monash Medical Centre in Clayton.
“Monash Children’s will be one of the largest suburban hospital development projects in the state’s history and once completed will provide treatment to an additional 7300 patients each year,” Mr Brumby said.
“Victorians expect and deserve the best health facilities no matter where they live and that’s why we will continue to make major investments in our health system.”
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