As the $835 million John Hunter Health and Innovation Precinct moves closer to completion, frontline staff warn workforce shortages could limit its full potential.
John Hunter and John Hunter Children’s Hospital NSWNMA Branch president Rosie DeWil admitted the new facility would be a significant upgrade for the region.
However, there were some doubts moving forward, too.
“The new hospital is big and shiny and wonderful as it’s going to be,” Ms DeWil said.
“But, we’re not going to be able to staff it to the capacity that it’s going to eventually stretch to.”
The redevelopment will deliver a major boost to services, including a state-of-the-art emergency department designed to handle more than 95,000 patients each year.
There’ll be 22 operating theatres, nine interventional suites, expanded maternity services and a 60% increase in intensive care capacity.
Despite these improvements, Ms Dewil said expectations would need to be managed.
“There’s a worry the patients will expect wait times to decrease because the emergency department is bigger or there are more theatres,” she stated.
“That’s not going to be the case straight away.”
Ms De Wil said transparency around timelines would help manage those expectations as the hospital transitions into the new facility.
“I don’t think many members are fully aware of the phases required to renovate the existing wards and bring new in-patient beds,” she added.
“There could be more information for staff and the community about how long those next stages are going to take.”
Rosie De Wil has raised staffing concerns over new John Hunter Hospital. Image: Supplied
Ms DeWil said staffing pressures were already being felt across the hospital, particularly on wards where ratios had not been fully-implemented.
“The wards are under significant stress,” she told the Newcastle Weekly.
“We’ve got people leaving to go interstate to Queensland and Victoria where pay is better at quite concerning rates.”
Many healthcare workers are experiencing burnout, with some taking on additional work to keep up with the rising cost-of-living.
She said while new graduate nurses were entering the system, it wasn’t enough to offset the loss of experienced staff.
“We have a large cohort of new graduate nurses but, even then, there’s not enough to staff safely,” Ms DeWil said.
She also flagged that the hospital’s expanded capacity would be rolled out gradually, not immediately upon opening.
“Increased growth and capacity won’t happen for another two-to-three years,” she said
Despite the challenges, Ms Dewil said staff remained optimistic about what the redevelopment would bring.
“It’s going to be a fantastic facility,” she summed up.
“But, recruitment and retaining nurses is critical to making it work.”
Construction of the new acute services building is expected to be completed in 2026, followed by an operational commissioning period before it opens to patients.
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