Tugun Satellite Hospital readies for first patients

A new medical facility expected to ease pressure on overworked Gold Coast hospitals will begin taking its first patients next month. WATCH THE VIDEO

A satellite hospital facility the state says will ease the burden on the Coast’s overworked health system will soon accept its first patients.

The Tugun Satellite Hospital will be completed later this month.

Located in Boyd Street, the facility’s Minor Injuries and Illnesses Clinic (MIIC) will begin accepting its first walk-in patients from November 15.

The front entrance of the Tugun Satellite Hospital located on Boyd Street. Picture: Glenn Campbell

The MIIC will be the first service of several promised at the facility to come online this year – with the remaining services to launch in staggered stages from 2024 onwards.

The MIIC will be open to the public from 8am – 10pm, seven days a week – providing walk-in, urgent care for illnesses and injuries that aren’t life-threatening. It can treat up to 490 patients per week.

Health Minister Shannon Fentiman said: “With more than 580,000 people presenting to our EDs in the last quarter, this facility will help our frontline workers focus on major emergencies.”

Recruitment for doctors and nurses is currently underway, including general practitioners who will operate at the satellite hospital. It is the first time in 20 years that Gold Coast Health has employed GPs.

The Minor Injuries and Illnesses Clinic will not have overnight beds but can treat to up to 490 patients per week. Picture: Glenn Campbell

Registered nurse Caroline West has since been appointed the MIIC’s Nurse Unit Manager.

Ms West said nurses hired for the MIIC clinic will have a proven history working inside emergency departments.

“Although we’re not an emergency department, we understand that patients who walk through the door could be unwell so it’s important that we have emergency-trained clinicians that can manage emergency conditions,” she said.

The facility is one of seven planned across southeast Queensland, funded under the $376 million Satellite Hospitals Program.

The X Ray equipment at the Tugun Satellite Hospital. Picture: Glenn Campbell

While it does not feature any overnight beds, Housing Minister and Gaven MP Meaghan Scanlon said the Tugun facility was a “major milestone” for the city’s growing health care system. Ms Scanlon pointed to the state’s investment in health infrastructure projects including the new Coomera Hospital, Gold Coast University Hospital expansion, the Gold Coast Secure Mental Health Rehabilitation Unit and expansions to Robina Hospital that will deliver 134 new beds.

The Tugun Satellite Hospital’s renal dialysis services are expected to come online by January next year.

An Indigenous Yarning Circle will soon be completed at the facility. Picture: Glenn Campbell

However the operational start dates for its day medical services, outpatient care, allied health care and midwifery care are yet to be confirmed.

Gold Coasters will have a chance to tour the new facility with a Community Open Day on November 10, featuring community stalls, food and coffee trucks, with games and entertainment.

The satellite hospital, also known as Banyahrmabah ‘a place to be made healthy’ in the local Yugambeh language, will feature Indigenous murals, a healing circle and dedicated services for Indigenous patients.