The Allan Labor Government is delivering important upgrades at Gippsland Lakes Complete Health, ensuring locals have safe and comfortable healthcare closer to home.
Minister for Health Infrastructure Mary-Anne Thomas today visited the health service to announce a $544,000 boost via the Regional Health Infrastructure Fund (RHIF) that will deliver a new roof at the older campus building, improved heating, ventilating and air-conditioning (HVAC) system.
Importantly, the new roof will prevent water leaking into the facility and the repositioned and new serviced ventilation systems will result in better building airflow. It has also been designed to enable future solar panel installation to be undertaken as part of the health service's climate and sustainability action plan.
Improvements to the HVAC system will also ensure patients will be comfortable when seeking care, as well as increasing staff comfort and wellbeing.
Gippsland Lakes Complete Health provides home care, allied health, nursing, medical, counselling, family, youth and children's services throughout the region and employs more 500 employees and 300 volunteers across six sites - Lakes Entrance (Jemmeson Street & GLCH Children's Centre), Bairnsdale, Bruthen, Metung and Nowa Nowa.
The Labor Government has allocated more than $1.1 million in funding through the RHIF for health infrastructure upgrades at Gippsland Lakes Complete Health, including for a new solar power system ensuring that staff can continue to operate in the wake of major power outages or catastrophic events like bushfires.
Across Victoria, the latest round of RHIF grants is supporting rural and regional hospitals, community health services and Aboriginal Community Controlled Health Organisations to ensure they can continue to provide safe and efficient care to local communities.
With 45 projects across 39 rural and regional health services, the program is ensuring communities continue to have access to high-quality care, no matter where they live - with the delivery of these projects also supporting hundreds of jobs across the state.
Established by the Labor Government in 2016 and overseen by the Victorian Health Building Authority, the RHIF program is now worth $790 million with more than 675 projects funded for regional health services - the largest investment ever dedicated grants program in Victoria's history.
For more information vhba.vic.gov.au/health/regional-facilities/regional-health-infrastructure-fund.
As stated by Minister for Health Mary-Anne Thomas
"Everyone deserves access to quality health care facilities and services and we're ensuing communities across the Gippsland region have exactly that close to home."
As stated by Member for Eastern Victoria Tom McIntosh
"The new roof and overhauling of the heating and cooling system will help make Gippsland Lakes Community Health more sustainable and self-sufficient while increasing comfort for patients."
