NT Health pauses changes to Darwin and Palmerston hospitals

A plan to restructure two of the biggest hospitals in the Territory has been put on hold. We reveal the factors behind the delay.

Royal Darwin Hospital called three code yellows in 2022 as they reached capacity due to Covid and staff shortages. Picture: Che Chorley

Major changes to departments at the Northern Territory’s largest hospitals have been put on the back-burner for the foreseeable future.

The restructure at Royal Darwin Hospital and Palmerston Regional Hospital, which was initially reported to involve up to 45 senior leadership roles, was paused at the end of last year.

The process was up to the consultation phase with staff and stakeholders in October and was said to result in changes in the months that followed.

However, NT Health said the timeline was delayed as it worked to improve some aspects of the hospitals.

Palmerston Regional Hospital has focused on improving service delivery instead of implementing a departmental restructure. Picture: Justin Kennedy

“The current priority for NT Health is to improve service delivery and performance across our health network by implementing the NT Health Operational Plan and NT Health Strategic Plan,” a spokeswoman said.

“To help facilitate these processes efficiently, in December 2022, the Royal Darwin and Palmerston Hospital (RDPH) divisional structure reform was paused.”

It came after three code yellows and two code browns were called the hospital throughout the year.

Code yellows are called when a hospital reaches its capacity while a code brown is in response to an incident that requires a whole-of-system approach.

The spokeswoman said the restructure would be happening at some point this year.

“This work remains a priority for 2023, and is expected to recommence later in the year.”

The work has been slated “to build a modern, dynamic and sustainable health system”, an NT Health spokeswoman said in October.