Mater Springfield Hospital expansion project takes important first step

Plans for a long-promised and much needed expansion of a major Ipswich hospital have been revealed. SEE THE PLANS

Ipswich’s chronic hospital bed shortage issues could soon be at least partly alleviated, with plans for a 10-storey building at Mater’s newest facility recently submitted to council for consideration.

Applicant Mater Misericordiae lodged a development application with Ipswich City Council on December 23 for the highly-anticipated Mater Springfield public hospital development.

Mater Health Services seeks to co-locate the new structure at the site of its 95-bed private hospital at Health Care Dr, which opened in 2015.

The new hospital is proposed to be co-located at the existing Mater Private Hospital Springfield.

The private facility is renowned for its ‘state-of-the-art’ cancer care centre and digitally-integrated operating theatres but does not currently have an emergency department.

This has posed a dire challenge for the city’s residents over the years, with the Queensland Times reporting in March that 40 per cent of patients attending Ipswich Hospital’s emergency department were not treated within clinically recommended times.

Mater’s recent development application comes following calls from Springfield developer Springfield City Group for the state government to approve a public hospital in a bid to help combat excessive patient wait times.

Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk, Health Minister Yvette D'Ath and Treasurer Cameron Dick visited Mater Private Hospital Springfield in May to announce the expansion. Picture: Jono Searle

Queensland Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk indicated the state government had listened to Ipswich’s pleas in May, when she announced the current private facility would indeed be expanded.

The proposed public hospital will accommodate for 152 beds over about 2.6ha of additional general floor area, improving the established stage one hospital building.

If approved, the development would comprise two separate building structures – the stage two public hospital and the ancillary central energy plant – within the parcel of land bounded by Mercy Ave, Health Care Dr, Nightingale Ave, and John Nugent Way.

Stage two of the hospital is expected to deliver a much-needed emergency department for the region, as well as overnight and same-day beds, an ICU and maternity services.

The facility will be privately funded by Mater Health Services, though the state government will reportedly contribute an initial $177 million for the care of public patients.

“This partnership will mean more than $1 billion investment by the Queensland government over the next decade,” Ms Palaszczuk said in May.

Plans submitted to the council stated stage one and stage two of the hospital will operate as one integrated facility, with stage two set to include areas for pathology, pharmacy, operating theatres, outpatients, research, as well as an emergency department, a neonatal intensive care unit, an intensive care unit and a birthing suite.

An artist's impression of the ambulance bay access at John Nugent Way, proposed for the Mater Springfield Hospital.

A pharmacy and cafe has also been proposed for the public hospital, as well as an additional 438 parking spaces – bringing the total number of parking spaces at the site to 593, distributed over two levels.

The project is expected to create more than 700 jobs in construction and more than 1000 new frontline health jobs once operational in late 2024.

The expanded Mater Springfield site will provide services for both public and private patients.