Bendigo Health will be getting extra Emergency Department (ED) beds as part of a Labor state election pledge.
It’s one of 12 public hospitals statewide set to benefit from the plan, announced on Sunday, October 25th.
“We’ve waited in an ED with our daughter many times – nothing’s more stressful,” Premier Ben Carroll said
“Nurses make our hospitals tick, and we’ll hire more of them so you’re seen sooner.”
Labor’s plan sees 750 more nurses being hired, plus an additional 750 health workers and 250 beds, shared between the 12 hospitals in both metropolitan and regional areas – though it’s not yet known how many will be allocated to Bendigo.
The move aims to “slash wait times by up to 20 per cent” and allow another 210 thousand patients to be treated per year.
Currently, the average ED wait time in Victoria is around 15 minutes.
This announcement comes as staff at Bendigo Health grapple with population surges and an increased workload.
So far this month, the organisation has taken to social media three times to inform that the city’s hospital was “experiencing very high demand” and that patients requiring non-urgent care would “experience significant delays”.
Meantime, the Victorian Opposition is casting doubt on the government’s plans, pointing to still-undelivered pledges made regarding a new hospital in West Gippsland, and a proposed upgrade to Wonthaggi’s hospital during the last state poll in 2022.
“Ben Carroll and Labor’s health promises simply cannot be trusted,” Shadow Minister for Health, Georgie Crozier said.
“Before the last election, Labor told Victorians they could have it all and failed to deliver – this time will be no different.”
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