St Vincent’s Private Hospital Toowoomba’s new emergency department will open November 16

It took $15 million to build and features a state-of-the-art emergency department and radiology centre. Now’s your chance to check it out without having to arrive in the back of an ambulance.

St Vincent’s Private Hospital Toowoomba’s new Emergency Department is set to swing into operation on November 16.

The official opening of The Clive Berghofer Wing: Emergency Department and Queensland X-Ray Radiology Centre, including a blessing and smoking ceremony, was held on Monday night.

And now the Darling Downs community has an opportunity to view the state-of-the-art $15 million facility before it’s put into use.

It will be open to the public from 9am until 1pm this Saturday, November 7, and will include guided tours.

Free coffee and a sausage sizzle will be available.

Due to COVID-19 precautions, bookings are essential and can be made here.

St Vincent’s Hospital chief executive officer Ms Kathryn McKeefry said the new facility was the latest addition in the comprehensive infrastructure program started at the hospital three years ago.

“We have proudly served the community for almost 100 years, and purpose-built infrastructure like our new emergency department and radiology service supports us being able to provide first-class healthcare into the future,” Ms McKeefry said.

Toowoomba Private Emergency Group will continue to operate the emergency department which includes three resuscitation areas, 15 treatment areas, and a medical assessment and planning unit with the ability to provide allied health and other services.

“We are very excited the new medical imaging facilities at Queensland X-Ray will include nuclear medicine, ultrasound, X-ray, CT and MRI scanner and will be operational by December,” Ms McKeefry said.

The beautiful timber feature in the new emergency department's reception area is made from timber preserved and milled from the pine trees that were removed from the site to make way for the facility.

“We are grateful to local philanthropist Clive Berghofer for his $3.5 million donation which made the project possible.”

Ms McKeefry said the department would be easier to access because it was developed with a road frontage on the southwest corner of the hospital bordering Mackenzie and Herries Sts.

The facility also features a new cafe with indoor and outdoor dining, and a florist.

There have been a number of recent infrastructure additions at the hospital, including the Clive Berghofer Operating Theatre Suite which opened in January 2018.