The Malinauskas Labor Government is opening 26 more hospital beds and a brand-new ambulance station for residents in Adelaide’s southern suburbs, as it continues to deliver its important election commitments to build a bigger health system.
Older people requiring hospital-based specialist geriatric services will be able to be treated closer to home, thanks to 26 new beds opening at the Repat Health Precinct from Wednesday, October 2.
It comes as the State Government officially opens the doors to the new $8 million Edwardstown Ambulance Station, located next to the Repat, bolstering the ambulance response in the state’s southern suburbs.
The new $26 million geriatric ward at the Repat will provide vital services for older patients, supporting patient flow from busy Emergency Departments and helping to get patients back to a home setting faster.
The new ward means the existing Geriatric Evaluation and Management (GEM) Unit (Timor 6) at the Repat, which currently houses 24 beds, will more than double its capacity over two months to a total of 50 beds.
The new ward will provide a purpose-built space for hospital-based specialist geriatric rehabilitation services to patients aged 65 years or older.
The GEM service operates across both metro and rural locations and has supported 517 patients in the past year (1 August 2023 to 1 August 2024).
The specialist team comprises of geriatricians, nurses, physiotherapists, dietitians, pharmacists, psychologists, occupational therapists, speech pathologists and social workers.
The new ward - named Tarin Kowt - takes its name from the Tarin Kowt walls, on the Tarin Kowt military base in Afghanistan, reflecting the Repat's pround history serving the South Australian veteran community.
More than 50,000 Australians have served in the Middle East Region since 2001 and military personnel who have deployed to the Middle East are invited to sign the wall as a record of their service.
The new ward is part of the $498 million State and Federal Government’s commitment to upgrade Flinders Medical Centre and the Repat, expanding access to services for the community of Southern Adelaide.
Meanwhile, the new state-of-the-art Edwardstown Ambulance Station – located at the junction of Daws Road and Francis Street – will begin operating today.
It provides crews with important access to major arterial roads and helps address the need for additional capacity in the southern city fringe suburbs.
The station will house the 16 paramedics recruited in 2022 and 12 Emergency Support Services (ESS) ambulance officers for Edwardstown as part of the Government’s quick actions to ease ambulance pressure.
The station includes facilities to garage four ambulances and two light fleet vehicles, with a carport for an additional fleet. It also features training spaces and leadership offices and will serve as a hub for ongoing skills development for local crews.
Edwardstown is the sixth station that has opened since the Malinauskas Government came to office, following the openings of stations at Norwood, Woodville, Port Augusta, Birdwood and Strathalbyn.
Quotes
Attributable to Peter Malinauskas
It’s fantastic to see more and more of our promised beds and new ambulance stations coming online to help the South Australian community.
We’re building a bigger health system with more than 600 new beds, hundreds more doctors, nurses and paramedics and a record $7 billion investment in new health infrastructure.
Every bed and each new ambulance station makes a critical difference to helping people get the care and treatment they need, faster, in the best possible setting.
Attributable to Chris Picton
We have a growing and ageing population and these new beds at the Repat will better serve our older patients while helping take pressure off our busy emergency departments.
The 26 extra beds double the capacity of one of our most important rehabilitation centres for older South Australians at the Repat. Having an expert team of doctors, nurses, allied health clinicians, and pharmacists means our patients will have the specialist support they need, closer to home.
I’m also thrilled to be opening another one of our amazing new ambulance stations – this time at Edwardstown – to help the extra ambos we’ve hired reach patients quicker.
Attributable to Member for Elder Nadia Clancy
I am incredibly proud to be part of a Government investing in our health system in so many ways.
That feeling is particularly strong today with the opening of our brand new ambulance station and 26 more hospital beds all in the Repat precinct, providing more services in our community.
Attributable to Southern Adelaide Local Health Network Rehabilitation, Aged Care & Palliative Care Clinical Director, Associate Professor Craig Whitehead
More beds for people in the South are exactly what we need right now. South Australia has the highest proportion of older people on mainland Australia, and as our population grows and ages the demand on our health system increases.
In July alone, more than 27 per cent of our patients who attended SALHN EDs were aged 60 or older.
The new purpose-built facility ensures that our clinicians can provide the highest quality care in the right environment for those patients.
Attributable to SAAS Chief Executive Officer, Rob Elliott
We are excited to give our dedicated Edwardstown paramedics and ambulance officers a top-tier station, enabling them to provide the highest level of care to those in need.
The new Edwardstown ambulance station will significantly enhance our southern suburbs capacity and seamlessly integrate with our existing nearby stations in Glengowrie, Marion, and Mitcham - strengthening our overall response network in the southern Adelaide region.
