New Calvary Launceston Private Hospital is one step closer
4th May 2022
Delivering the next generation of health services for northern Tasmania is a step closer with the finalisation of the Project Development Agreement (PDA) between the Tasmanian Government and Calvary to deliver a private hospital co-located with the Launceston General Hospital (LGH).
The agreement signed today includes sale of land at 52 Frankland Street to Calvary with a covenant that it must be used to deliver health services, and the delivery of a covered walkway bridge to connect the two hospitals.
Co-locating the Calvary private hospital with the LGH will maximise the benefits of Launceston General Hospital Masterplan by supporting delivery of improved health services and help to attract and retain health professionals, including specialists into the Launceston community.
It will deliver additional and complementary services to support and reduce pressure on the LGH, with 128 inpatient beds and 40 day patient beds, 10 operating theatres as well as specialised facilities for oncology and two cardiac catheterisation labs.
Martin Bowles AO PSM, National Chief Executive Officer, Calvary Health Care said “We are very pleased to put the time into getting the service mix right for the people of Northern Tasmania. Our aim is to grow to support the changing needs of the communities we serve, as we have done in Tasmania for more than eighty years.
Services will include general medical and surgical services, as well as gastrointestinal, cardiology, oncology, mental health, gynaecology, radiology and pathology, and palliative care and an extended hours GP clinic.
Today’s signing of the PDA, is the culmination of negotiations that initially began in 2017, and more recently involved several months of consultation and negotiations between the Department of Health and Calvary. Importantly this includes detailed discussions about services and capacity with key health sector stakeholders to ensure the best balance of service delivery between the LGH and the new private hospital.
The co-located hospital is expected to deliver $130 million investment into Launceston and support more than 1000 direct and indirect jobs during construction.
Over coming months the Department of Health and Calvary will develop a detailed Services Agreement, the principles of which are set out in the PDA. The Services Agreement will provide for a two year trial of private patient admissions on a 24/7 basis, enabling greater flexibility in patient transfers and bed utilisation and freeing up capacity.
In parallel Calvary will secure the necessary development approvals and other conditions to land transfer. Assuming all conditions are achieved, construction is expected to begin in early 2024, with a project completion date in early 2026.
