Hospital gives birth to new era | Sunshine Coast Health | Fitness and ...

Director of nursing Rae Priaulx and general manager Terrance Seymour in the new maternity and women's health unit at the Sunshine Coast Private Hospital.

Cade Mooney

SUNSHINE Coast Private Hospital has shown off its new maternity and women's health unit just days before its official opening.

The Buderim-based hospital and only private maternity unit on the Coast will open its $5 million facility on Monday.

In a sneak preview yesterday morning, general manager Terrance Seymour said the number of babies delivered at the hospital each year was expected to triple from approximately 400 to 1200.

"To cope with this, the new maternity unit will have expanded capacity to 20 beds. All rooms feature double beds, allowing the father to stay overnight, and the latest comforts," Mr Seymour said.

There are also three birthing suites, all with water-birthing facilities and a level four special care nursery with seven cots.

The newer and larger maternity ward will have nine obstetricians and gynaecologists working there.

Four obstetricians, from the Nambour Selangor Private Hospital, moved over earlier in the year.

It saw the closure of the maternity ward at the Nambour hospital at the end of March.

Mr Seymour said the new ward would make them one of the top 10 private maternity units in Australia in terms of size and scale.

"The Sunshine Coast Private Hospital is consistently rated among the top 1% of Australian hospitals, and these improvements can only enhance our ability to look after the people of the Sunshine Coast to the highest possible standard," he said.

On Monday, all existing in-patients in the old maternity ward will be moved into the new one.

The old ward has been acting as part maternity-part surgical, but will converge into a full surgical-general medical ward once the move is completed.

The new maternity and women's health unit is one of three major expansion projects under way at the hospital.

"We are also in the process of building a stand-alone mental health unit, as well as planning for the expansion of the intensive care and critical care unit, which will increase the existing unit from eight beds to 14," Mr Seymour said.

?

NEW

• Three birthing suites
• 20 beds
• Seven cots in the Special Care Nursery

OLD

• Two birthing suites
• 8 beds
• Two cots in the Special Care Nursery

nicki minaj grammy red carpet grammy award winners the band perry grammy awards whitney houston autopsy dobie gray