Pledge to ‘super size’ Royal emergency department

TWENTY-FIVE new emergency department beds will come to the Royal Hobart Hospital by the end of next year in a bid to fix the state’s burdened health system.

Department of Health Secretary Kathrine MorganWicks said emergency rooms in Tasmania and across the country had experienced a huge leap in presentations.

Last financial year the RHH recorded 72,325 presentations compared with 61,743 presentations in 2019-20.

Health Minister Jeremy Rockliff said these figures prompted an ED overhaul over the coming 15 months which would meet emergency demand until 2035.

“Demand is increasing, complexity is increasing, and that’s why it’s very pleasing that we are bringing forward, supersizing – if you like – our emergency department,” he said.

Ms Morgan-Wicks said the new expansion was greater than previously budgeted plans to cater for “social distancing and the greater areas required for our treatment spaces”.

The old maternity unit will be refitted with 25 beds, while other works will transform RHH Ward 3A to add 24 general medicine beds this financial year.

The vaccination clinic operating out of 3A will move to the CBD clinic location in October so the works can start.