Huge hospital project gets a new boss after a five month search

The new Women’s and Children’s Hospital project finally has a new boss, with a stacked interstate resume, after the director quit last year.

The $3.2bn new Women’s and Children’s Hospital project has a new boss, five months after project director Brendan Hewitt quit to spend time with family.

Tom Kirkland has started as project director having previously been chief executive of the Victorian School Building Authority.

Mr Kirkland has worked in health infrastructure across Australia, including leading a team that successfully delivered the Royal Children’s Hospital in Melbourne.

He also provided delivery leadership to the Sunshine Coast University Hospital project team and worked with the Royal Adelaide Hospital project team.

The colossal build has been overseen by SA Health deputy chief executive Ms Judith Formston as acting project manager in the interim.

Render of the $3.2bn new Women's and Children's Hospital. Picture: Supplied / SA Government

Mr Kirkland takes the job as a new Expression of Interest was recently conducted for the next phase of the project.

Ms Formston said the current design team for Stage 1 including Woods Bagot in conjunction with Bates Smart, Jacobs and BDP continued to lead the project but to give taxpayers best value “a procurement process is currently underway for the design team for the next phase (Stage 2) of the project, which is the design of the main clinical building, including its interiors.”

How part of the planned $3.2bn new Women's and Children's site looks. Picture: Kelly Barnes

“Until the process is finalised, no announcement can be made as to the appointed designers,” she said. “The expectation is for any timelines previously announced to be met.”

A request for a full tender will commence “shortly.”

The planned completion for the new WCH is 2030-31, however opposition health spokeswoman Ashton Hurn said this had to be in doubt.

“It’s impossible to believe there won’t be a delay in the delivery of the new WCH project given Labor has left it without a specific project director for almost six months – it’s the biggest health project in a generation and Labor has left it rudderless for too long,” she said.

Site shots at the $3.2bn new Women's and Children's hospital site. Picture: Kelly Barnes

Health Minister Chris Picton countered saying: “Ashton Hurn is being negative as always and talking down a bigger and better new Women’s and Children’s Hospital that the Malinauskas Labor Government is delivering.

“The new hospital will be far bigger and better for South Australians than the former Liberal government’s ill-conceived proposal that would have had only one extra bed.”

Mr Hewitt had been infrastructure director for the previous $1.95bn new WCH planned by the former Liberal state government – which blew out to $2.8bn.

When that plan was scrapped by the incoming Labor government and the new WCH project was moved to a bigger site and a larger hospital under a $3.2bn plan, Mr Hewitt was appointed project director.

The new hospital will have 394 beds with room for 20 more as needed, compared with 344 in the original plan, meeting Labor’s election promise of 50 additional beds.

Originally published as Huge hospital project gets a new boss after a five month search