Royal Hobart Hospital approaching completion
21 June 2019
The $689 million
Royal Hobart Hospital
Redevelopment is now just months away from practical completion.
The builder,
John Holland
-
Fairbrother, has provided a revised
construction program for the Redevelopment with a forecast Practical
Completion date of September this year.
This is one month later than previously forecast.
However, the RHH Project Team has taken the
precautionary view that there remains a risk this could occur closer to
end of this year, noting the well publicised issues the builder has
faced in delivery of the project to date.
The Project Team will continue to apply a high level of scrutiny to the
project to ensure it is delivered as soon as possible, and is of the
quality we expect.
Given the revised completion date, the Secretary of the Department of
Health has provided advice to Government on the most appropriate pathway
forward and timeframes for operational commissioning.
The commissioning of patient services on the ground floor, such as the
new Access and Patient Flow Unit, can commence shortly after Practical
Completion with some services expected to be migrated by the end of this
calendar year.
The Access and Patient Flow Unit will provide a range of services to
patients, including the facilitation of admissions and discharges as
well as a transit lounge.
It is then planned that movement of major inpatient services take place
in February next year.
The process of commissioning a new hospital is complex, and requires
significant planning and focus on a wide range of tasks including
planning the movement of services, staff orientation and training in the
new building, the testing of clinical scenarios and new models of care.
Transition in February 2020 will provide appropriate time to ensure the
safe and efficient relocation into K-Block with minimal impact on
operational services. This will ensure patients and staff benefit from
the additional capacity as soon as it can be safely commissioned, well
before winter next year.
The RHH Redevelopment is the largest health infrastructure project
Tasmania has ever seen, and the Hodgman Liberal Government is proud
to finally be delivering it, after it was talked about for generations.
The 2019-20 Budget is about maintaining the momentum and investing for
growth in essential services. That's why we
are delivering $132 million to progressively open new beds at the RHH
over the next four years.
This funding will see more than 100 new beds open at the RHH over the
next four years, with an estimated additional 460 full-time equivalent
frontline health staff.
RHH Ground Floor:
https://roundme.com/tour/52660/view/133022/
--ENDS--
Source: Tasmanian Government - www.premier.tas.gov.au
Contact: N/A
External Links: N/A
Recent news by: Tasmanian Government