The Skin Centre: First look at exclusive new Gold Coast skin cancer hospital at The Lanes

Plans for a new VIP-only hospital on the Gold Coast have been unveiled, with the giant new centre having some surprising features. SEE THE PLANS

A GIANT new exclusive hospital specialising in skincare surgeries will be built at the heart of a $1.3bn new Gold Coast mini-city.

The Skin Centre, led by director and well-known dermatologist Dr Andrew Freeman, will build the state-of-the-art facility, the first of its kind in Queensland.

It is slotted for a major chunk of The Lanes precinct being developed by Sunland Group and Panthera Group.

Plans filed with the Gold Coast City Council show the hospital will feature two buildings of three and four storeys. It will have operating theatres, laboratories, injectables rooms, a cafe and even six accommodation units - for VIP patients staying on site when having work done. Units are also for staff.

Construction will begin in the first half of 2023.

It comes as the state government progresses its own plans for satellite hospitals in Coomera and Tugun while NSW has its own new hospital at Kings Forrest in the Tweed region.

Artist impression of the new The Skin Centre hospital which is planned for The Lanes on the Gold Coast. Picture: Supplied

It will have a dedicated Mohs Micrographic surgery hospital to treat skin cancers.

“The Skin Centre breaks the mould for stereotypical hospital facilities with a central location and an emphasis on high architectural quality,” a report filed with council reads.

“A medical facility of this size and nature will attract interstate patients and the best medical talent to the Gold Coast which assists the local economy and job creation.

“The development is proposed to be a specialty offering for patients and is marketed at exclusive and private surgeries, while the apartments are intended to be utilised for VIP patients that are seeking to recuperate on-site with ease of access to doctors and nursing staff.

Specialist dermatologist Dr Andrew Freeman. Picture: Jerad Williams

“These patients may travel from around the country and not want to stay within a hotel. The proposed apartments may be used to ensure private and accessible recovery post-surgery.”

It is earmarked for the corner of Hooker Boulevard and The Lanes Boulevard - neighbouring the four Lanes towers and the new $82m shopping centre.

Council has approved the shopping centre.

The specialist hospital will be the first of its kind in Queensland. Picture: Supplied

The elaborate appearance medicine hospital project is expected to go before the Gold Coast City Council’s planning committee next year for approval.

The Skin Centre, a team of medical skin specialists, operate from specialist suites within the private Pindara Hospital at Benowa.

It also offers a range of cosmetic procedures including injectables, wrinkles and fine lines, moles, facial slimming and enlarged pores.

Dr Freeman said he was “excited” to expand his centre’s footprint.

“We have been involved in caring for the local community’s skin needs for the past twenty years, and this expansion into the heart of the Gold Coast will give us an opportunity to be more accessible and provide further care to our patients,” he said.

“We’re working very hard with our management team and architects to consider all parts of the patient experience to design a practice for the future.”

The multi-building complex has been pitched as “state of the art”. Picture: Supplied

Dr Freeman is a visiting dermatologist at Pindara Private Hospital, Pacific Private Hospital, and Gold Coast University Hospital. He was the first surgeon in Queensland to perform the Mohs Micrographic procedure, which he said has “the highest cure rate and lowest recurrence rates of any skin cancer treatment”.

According to his website, Dr Freeman has “a special interest in acne, hair disorders, full face rejuvenation and laser treatments”.

He has a YouTube series, “The Urban Dermatologist”.

The Skin Centre is the third new hospital unveiled for the Gold Coast this financial year. Joint venture partners Keylin and Kinstone Group have progressed plans for the $1bn Foxwell health precinct at Coomera and Northwest Healthcare building a specialist mental hospital on a nearby site.

Artist impression of The Lanes Retail Village at The Lanes where the new hospital will be built Picture: Supplied.

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