Campus Plan Update
Photograph of the preserved old hospital - 2011
The campus master plan is being developed. We are hopeful that: No land will be divested. This will allow maintenance of the current campus for the next 50 years. Ideally these plans will make provision for future expansion of the campus in the long term … which will allow the campus to continue to service the increasing population density that is inevitable in the North Shore Ryde Local Health District. We are confident that the campus plan will accommodate the previously displaced services such as Allied Health, Childcare, Family accommodation and Rehabilitation services.
When the Clinical Services Building (CSB) opens in 2014, the bed capacity of the campus will be increased from 421 to 481 acute medical and surgical beds. This will allow RNSH to manage its patients with close to 85% occupancy based on current activity but as activity increases (as it does annually) there will most likely be a need for more beds over the next 5-10 years unless other ways are found to manage the current load in the Local Health District.
Campaign Update
There will be a campaign update this Thursday in the Kolling Institute between 1.00-2.00 pm. The posters can be downloaded from the following links (Poster 1,Poster 2, Flyers).
Background
Proposed land divestment at RNSH
Just a reminder of the difficulties we have faced going back more than four years. This link from 2007, demonstrates how the RNSH Clinical Advisory committee tried to convince NSW Health that there should be more beds in the new hospital. See Link to the Daily Telegraph Article. In this article Clare Masters wrote:
“THE $702 million redevelopment of Royal North Shore Hospital is a disaster waiting to happen, according to leaked documents from clinicians showing the plans are woefully inadequate. … Opposition health spokeswoman Jillian Skinner yesterday called on the Government to reveal the details. “We need public exposure of what they are asking the private sector to tender for,” she said.”
Links to other similar interstate redevelopments are of interest. Such recent redevelopments include the Gold Coast Hospital (See details), The Royal Childrens Hospital in Victoria and the Fiona Stanley Hospital in Western Australian, where the expenditure per hospital bed is significantly greater. On each of these sites open space has been preserved and not sold to fund the project itself.
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About the Redevelopment
The NSW Government is planning a long overdue upgrade of this major local, referral and teaching hospital that services 1 in 6 of the NSW population and 1 in 17 Australians.
The $1 billion upgrade is a joint Public Private Partnership (PPP) between the NSW Government and InfraShore Consortium. While in favour of the upgrade, the RNSH Medical Staff Council (MSC) has major concerns that the redevelopment is grossly under-funded, and that the plans do not address the current problems burdening the hospital, nor cater for the future needs of our growing population.
Three key areas of the plan will significantly compromise the hospital’s future patient care and services:
- Land sell-off. The sale of more than 50 per cent of RNSH land (from 11.6 to 5.6 functional hectares) will stymie the potential for future hospital expansion and reduce the green open space within RNSH grounds.
- Inadequate beds. The failure to provide adequate bed numbers to meet the current and future needs of our community.
- Displaced services. The impractical relocation or omission of essential services, such as Mental Health, Women’s and Children’s, Pain Management and many more.
Proposed land divestment at RNSH
The plan to sell-off RNSH land is a short-sighted, revenue-raising venture by the State Government that will stymie the future of healthcare in the Northern Sydney Local Health Network (NSLHN). The sold land will house high-rise residential and commercial buildings up to 33 storeys high. NSW Health plans to use the $100 million profit from the land sale to pay a small portion of the RNSH redevelopment costs – equivalent to only 3 to 4 months running costs of the existing hospital.
How can you help?
- Please read our presentation and understand the facts.
- Download our petition and get your friends to sign it.
- Like our facebook page and suggest it to your friends.
- Follow us on Twitter.
- Subscribe to our Mailing List.
- Make an appointment to see you local government, state and federal members. This link may be helpful.
- Download our poster and flyer.
- Leave a comment at the bottom of the relevant web page or at this Link.
About RNS
Structural repairs to the main clinical services building at RNSH.
Royal North Shore Hospital is a teaching/referral hospital, which provides services to approximately 1 in 17 of the Australian population, in addition to its role as a local hospital in Northern Sydney. Its activities include a state-wide referral service for patients with spinal injuries and burns (for more details see this link). In the last 5-10 years there have been significant structural issues with the main building. Whilst temporary repairs were undertaken 5 years ago, the condition of the building has contributed significantly to the need to replace the main clinical services building. To fund this, the redevelopment plan involves the sale of an extensive part of the hospital campus. Unfortunately, if enacted this will result in a campus that is too small to function as a major referral centre. This will have a deleterious impact on the provision of health care for future generations. We are currently rolling out a petition to draw this matter to the attention of the NSW State Government.
The Current Proposal for the RNS Hospital Redevelopment
The Project was on public exhibition up until he 17th of December. The RNS Medical Staff Council has a number of major concerns regarding this plan. Or response can be seen here.
I strongly believe the plan of selling off so much land is a lack of proper planning. With the current staffing, we are stuggling to provide enough service to the community already,1/20 patients. How are we going to cope with a much smaller hospital whilst increasing number of residents at the surroundings with the ageing population? Compare to Westmead Hospital, we will be 28 times smaller. We don’t and will not have a rehabilitation unit, no hydrotherapy pool etc. There is so much more can be done but selling off so much land just leaving us no room to improve our service at all. Patients and the staff in the hospital will be the only victims at the end.
I feel that the goverment is wrong in selling off land at the site of RNSH. We have to look to the future especially with the number of unit blocks going up in the north shore area, which will make the number people living in the area much larger. The government should not be selling off assets to cover their incompetence.
It almost defies belief that any Govt would prioritise property developers and profits over a Public Hospital. RNSH is a major teaching hospital that provides world class health services and numerous benefits to the broader medical & research community.
I notice the sports oval is left untouched…..
Manly and Mona Vale Hospitals have been starved of funds and run into the ground and the ‘new’ hospital at Frenchs Forest is a political pipedream. Can’t we at least have one decent hospital north of the Bridge?
How narrow sighted is this sell off ! Just so the State Govt. will have money to make spending promises before the next election.Any moron can see this will land will be needed in the future with the population aging and increasing.The anger I feel to this State government is beyond words. They should be jailed for being incompetent!
I am an elderly cardiac patient, following CABG at RNSH in 1995. Since that time I have attended for cardiac education exercises, both on level 7 and, formerly in the hydrotheraphy pool.I have been a Hospital volunteer for 14 years and objected strongly, but vainly, at the closure of the pool. I am devastated to learn that those responsiblefor improving our hospital seem to only do what can be financed by selling off vast portions of the site. Perhaps, just perhaps, something can be done to stop this madness if there iis a change of government in March 2011. I certainly hope so.
Any thing i can do to help let me know ( re letter box drops or rally. march on state parliment )
While I fully support those hoping to save RNSH, and it comes as no surprise that this sleazy lot in charge would would attempt it.
I would also like to know what the Opposition Health spokesperson has to say about it.
Over to you Gillian.
How morally & financially bankrupt is this Labor Govt? To sell 50% of RNSH land is shortsighted & opportunistic. They intend to rob future generations to pay for their mismamagement of NSW over many years.
This Labor mob spend more on “spin” per annum than they will recoup from this sale. They are destroying Manly & Mona Vale hospitals & now intend to get their grubby hands on a major public asset.
They need a thrashing. Let’s give them one at the March elections.
private enterprise should not control public hospitals in any area
mistakes have already been made by the bean counters
who think they can run it like any other business
service will suffer, patients will suffer, staff will suffer
When has any building works ever been done with advice from the people who will use it?
Just keep your hands off property development ANY NSW Government. Sell, Sell,Sell ! That is all Governments are interested in these days. It never has been your expertise area and never will. RNSH is a great institution and must be allowed to develop and expand on its own ground. Hopefully not, but my kids & their kids may need a bed there one day to be attended to.
This Hospital has been a big part of my life, i feel sick when i was 5 i had a stroke, i remember when i was 7 the Doctors emberlized and my family stayed at the Rooms across the way as back then they had places for family to stay when they kids were going to be in hospital for awhile i know that they have already knocked that down and built something else, i also remember the weekend markets
Please leave this Hospital alone i have Grown up there and RPA,
The land sell off will also mean that staff will have reduce access to childcare facilities. Please also sign the “Save RNSH childcare petition.” Thanks
RNSH needs upgrading. It is a hospital on the the North Shore that all respect. To main this respect, upgrading is necessary.
I could not believe what I was reading when I first saw the poster about this sale. My first thought was “What lunatic dreamed up this decision?” I would like to nominate it as THE most stupid decision this bunch of no-hopers has made. Presumably the new government will reverse the decsion? Or will their greed also take priority over basic common sense?
My unit has devloped a state of the art program for heart attack management. The proven model of care in the proposed new RNSH will need to be changed because the space constraints of the hospital. Despite the best intentions of our administrators, our laboratories cannot be located on the same level as the intensive care and we have not been allocated space for a dedicated coronary care unit. I would also seek reassurance that adequate funding for patient care accompanies the new development. One of my laboratories remains closed one day a week for the last 12 months because of funding shorfalls. It would be a tragedy if the closure policy is ocntinued in the new building.
The people who work at RNSH are great but the place has been running down for years and there’s no longer any excuse for tolerating substandard facilities at RNSH. This redevelopment is the chance to get it right on this side of the harbour – selling off the land is irreversible.
A true measure of how we are seen – jeopardising our health for a quick dollar. Just because they are called public servants does not mean they can sell off public land and public spaces. Once sold, the decision cannot be reversed.
What happens for a source of revenue when our government(s) have finally sold the last piece of real estate?
It is time our governments stop taking the easy option in selling off public property for an income stream, and instead look at improving their own performances by streamlining policy and process to reduce costs; communities should not be subsidising their own ineptitude and lack of vision.
No land sell off
Having worked closely with the campaign, it is reassuring to see that some people still truly care about the future of this hospital as well as the future health of our community. The short-sightedness of the redevelopment is what really disappoints me the most – we all agree that upgrading is necessary but it has to be done the right way or we all run the risk of paying even more dearly for it in the near future.
Aren’t countless horror stories of land divestment and redevelopments-gone-wrong not enough to inspire others to support this cause?
Please continue the good work for accountability. This modern way of solving everything by sell off is normally the outcome of “lazy” minds.
The RNSH has been a big part of our family .
The people who work at RNSH are great and kind.
keep your hands off our hospital.
As a country bumpkin, not to mention a nurse who caught up in the NSW Health Freeze in 2009 & mental health advocate. I am all too aware of the fight which has ranged for a considerable time in relationship to the North Sydney Area Health Service.
1. Community Health Services, including Community Mental Health should as the name suggests exits in the community not on health care campsites. If you are seeing your GP you go to there surgery which is in the community the same needs to be said for seeing your psychiatrist/psychologist etc being a team approach of psycho-social education. North Sydney Community Mental Health Services was once Australasian Award winning practise with the excellent good work has slowly been eroded.
2. Royal North Shore Hospital is international renowned for the care of its Spinal Cord Injury Unit with it being of one of two specialists facilities in NSW not to mention the Burn Unit. I don’t know whether many people would appreciate it or not what it is like- Country person who is always surrounded with open space all there lives – with the blue sky, trees & grassland. First & last thing which you see morning & night is the sun rising over the landscape. Sudden there life is turned upside down your in a foreign, strange place unable to move miles from home & love-ones can’t see anything out the windows other than roofs additionally to the fact you don’t know when your going to see loved ones let alone home & friends & mates again, if ever not to mention the financial & emotional burdened that they maybe facing. Has a significant psychosocial holistic aspect on a person care not to recovery of those who are part of that family network.
3. Hospital environment needs to not only cater for those locally it services in a holistic approach. Additional with North Shore Hospital being a tertiary referring facilities it also has to cater for the client’s who referred/travel to the facility also providing supported close proximate accommodation which they need with some hospitalisation lasting anything up to 6-12 months. Additional it has to provide an environment where whether it is clients, relatives & staff can escape from the medical situation – landscaped gardens –outdoors not surrounded by brick walls –see some of nature so that they can just unwind –are at peace. I know that is one aspect the Spinal Cord Injury clients appreciate the most on moving out for rehabilitation at Royal Ryde Rehabilitation Unit – Moorong is the open spaces. It is properly also an aspect which most people would be at a lost to understand, though I know it was an aspect which when the Children’s Hospital was build at Westmead they took into consideration a great deal. Where is that type of environment going to exits at the New Royal North Shore Campise?
Thanks to the people of the North Shore for their concerns over our hospital. Where else could we go to have treatment when other hospitals through out Sydney have their own problems don’t have room for us
Having worked at RNS for over 40 years I have seen many changes but none worse than the intended sell off of our land. In years past at one time RNS was the largest hospital in the southern hemisphere and was a national, if not international, leader in many fields. But for years now it has been allowed to run down, had bandaids applied and services have suffered. This plan to reduce the useable area of RNS is very shortsighted and if carried out will spell the death knell for further expansion of services and result in sub standard access in all areas of medicine for the north shore population.
It is well known that funds are short but selling our assets is not the way to go.
Having just spent 36 hours in Royal North Shore emergency ward waiting for a bed allocation (the hospital was apparently full) let’s forget the politics and work on providing the needed services and care we all rely and depend on.
The incredible staff at RNS need the space and services to effectively carry out the amazing work they perform.
There is no provision for an hydrotherapy pool- despite the obvious need. Greenwich Hospital pool can’t meet the needs nor can the Willoughby Leisure Centre pool.
Even the RNS-staff financed pool was buldozed!
People get passionate about their hospitals & we pray our political leaders will have the wisdom to listen.