Sunshine Hospital is a public hospital located on Furlong Road in St Albans, a suburb of Melbourne, Australia. It is one of three major hospitals operated by Western Health in the western suburbs of Melbourne. The hospital takes its name from the major suburb of Sunshine near which it is located.
| Sunshine Hospital | |
|---|---|
| Western Health | |
  | |
| Geography | |
| Location | St Albans, Victoria, Australia |
| Coordinates | 37°45′36″S 144°48′54″E / 37.760°S 144.815°E |
| Organisation | |
| Care system | Medicare |
| Funding | Public hospital |
| Type | General |
| Affiliated university | The University of Melbourne & Victoria University |
| Services | |
| Emergency department | Yes |
| Helipad | No |
| History | |
| Opened | 1989 |
| Links | |
| Lists | Hospitals in Australia |
History edit
The first hospital around Sunshine was established in the 1920's by two nursing sisters at 9 King Edward Avenue, Albion, and was called St Andrews, with 14 beds.[1] It was renamed Sunshine and District Community Hospital in 1946, and was then managed with the then Western General Hospital located in Eleanor Street, Footscray, to become the Maribyrnong Medical Centre.[citation needed] Western General Hospital has been founded in 1853 was later renamed Footscray Hospital in 1989.[citation needed] A psychiatric facility, The Footscray Psychiatric Hospital has been opened nearby in the 1970's.[citation needed]
In 1989, the small Sunshine and District Community Hospital at King Edward Avenue was demolished and replaced by the extensive new Sunshine Hospital on Furlong Road in St Albans.[2] In 1996, together with Footscray Hospital and Williamstown Hospital, Sunshine Hospital became part of the Western Health Care Network, which was expanded in 1997 to become the North Western Health Care Network, and then reduced in size in 2000 to become Western Health, with the concurrent creation of Northern Health.[3]
In 2015, a 13-bed intensive care unit was opened at the hospital.[4] A specialist women's and children's hospital, called the Joan Kirner Women's and Children's Hospital, opened on the Sunshine Hospital site in May 2019.[5] It includes maternity and post-natal facilities.[6]
Facilities edit
The hospital has approximately 600 beds. This includes an emergency department, an intensive care unit, a cardiac care unit, women's and children's facilities, and mental health wards, along with aged care and rehabilitation facilities.[7]
Performance edit
The Sunshine Hospital emergency department processes more than 200 patients on average daily, with about 60 ambulances and 160 patients otherwise presented. As a consequence of this high volume, the hospital has the worst-performing emergency department of the three operated by Western Health, with the lowest rates of patients seen within the recommended four-hour time. The introduction of an intensive care unit in 2015 significantly increased the number of emergency presentations at Sunshine.[8]
In 2014, 5230 babies were born at the hospital, making it the third-busiest maternity hospital in Victoria. This number is expected to rise to 7000 by 2026 in line with high growth in the western suburbs of Melbourne.[9]
In 2016, Sunshine Hospital was ranked the third-best hospital in Melbourne for its efficiency in dealing with severe medical conditions in a report by the Auditor-General of Victoria.[10]
References edit
- ^ "Photograph (1963) - SUNSHINE & DISTRICT COMMUNITY HOSPITAL". Victorian Collections. Museums Victoria. Retrieved 14 January 2018.
- ^ "Sunshine Hospital (1989 – current) | findingrecords.dhhs.vic.gov.au". www.findingrecords.dhhs.vic.gov.au.
- ^ "Sunshine Hospital (1989 – current)". Wards of the State: Department of Health, State of Victoria.
- ^ Capone, Alesha (12 March 2015). "Intensive Care Unit opens at Sunshine Hospital". Brimbank Leader. Retrieved 27 June 2017.
- ^ "Joan Kirner Women's and Children's Hospital".
- ^ Laskie, Alexandra (31 October 2016). "First sod turned at Sunshine's new women's and children's hospital". Star Weekly Brimbank. Retrieved 27 June 2017.
- ^ "Sunshine Hospital". www.westernhealth.org.au. Retrieved 28 June 2017.
- ^ Cameron, Ben (18 October 2016). "Extra 7000 patients treated at Sunshine Hospital's emergency department this year". Star Weekly Brimbank. Retrieved 28 June 2017.
- ^ Alexandra, Laskie (29 November 2016). "Sunshine's baby boom continues". Star Weekly Brimbank. Retrieved 28 June 2017.
- ^ Cameron, Ben (15 February 2016). "Sunshine Hospital among most efficient". Star Weekly Brimbank. Retrieved 28 June 2017.
External links edit
- Western Health – Sunshine Hospital
- Western Health - Medical Library (Sunshine, Victoria) [For Western Health Staff & affiliated University of Melbourne Physiotherapy and Medical students. Not available to the public.]
- Western Health - Medical Library Twitter