New emergency facility opens doors

The emergency department at the new Albany Health Campus opened its doors on Wednesday at 8am.

Inpatients from the old Albany hospital were also transferred to the new wards yesterday, with services including a community mental health unit, specialist clinics, pharmacy, hospital in the home, palliative care and cancer nurses now open to patients at the recently completed $170 million facility.

St John Ambulance Albany sub-centre regional manager David Schober said the new hospital would offer a more streamlined approach and much higher level of care to the 55,000 patients the campus will serve across the Great Southern.

“From a St John Ambulance point of view, it is a fantastic new facility that will integrate all health services in a far more co-ordinated fashion,” he said.

“As far as our response time is concerned, that won’t change as that is down to our receival time, but the level of patient care will benefit in the way of the services provided once they are conveyed there.”

A WA Country Health spokesman said patients or clients with queries about upcoming appointments should contact their health service provider directly, and visitors should attend the new reception area off Warden Road.

Campus maps are at www.wacountry.health.wa.gov.au/ahc.