La Trobe Private Hospital reopens after redevelopment

Residents of Melbourne’s northern suburbs will have further access to health care and treatment, following the reopening of La Trobe Private Hospital. The hospital, located at La Trobe’s Bundoora campus, now comprises 34 beds, including four operating theatres and a four-bed high dependency unit. Clinical services offered at La Trobe Private include orthopaedics, general surgery, plastic surgery and urology, as well as a new radiology clinic and consulting suites.

Healthscope invested more than $25 million in the redevelopment to expand and enhance its longstanding partnership with La Trobe University, providing additional clinical education placements for La Trobe students as well as opportunities to receive professional learning experiences. Plans for the reopening of La Trobe Private Hospital were finalised in June 2021.

La Trobe University Vice Chancellor Professor Theo Farrell said the hospital will bring a range of health and education benefits to the local community while continuing to strengthen the university’s teaching, learning and research capabilities. “La Trobe Private Hospital is driving healthcare innovation, as a place where world-class health care is combined with hands-on professional training and pioneering research,” Farrell said.

Healthscope CEO Greg Horan said the redevelopment of the hospital will provide critical new healthcare services in Melbourne’s northern corridor, as well as continuing Healthscope’s work to support and develop the next generation of healthcare professionals. “It’s very exciting to see this hospital now completed and fully operational,” Horan said.

The hospital also features artwork — ‘Murungidyal’ The Healing — by First Nations artist Karen Lee Mungarrja, a Wiradjuri artist of the Tubba-Gah clan, Dubbo, NSW.

The artwork, commissioned for Healthscope’s recent reconciliation action plan, features a Boab tree, eucalyptus leaves, circles, rainbows and a journey symbol. In Karen’s words, “This artwork tells a story representing the values of Healthscope and the importance of community in the journey of care. The eucalyptus leaves are a representation of their use in Smoking Ceremony to welcome people and their use as bush medicine to heal. Meeting circles represent both the community and the staff that come together to provide care. The Journey symbol represents both the diversity of people who come to Healthscope and the journey of their health care. The Rainbows are the symbol of hope.”

Artwork by First Nations artist Karen Lee Mungarrja, a Wiradjuri artist of the Tubba-Gah clan, Dubbo, NSW. Image: Supplied.

The new facilities will also enhance La Trobe’s research capabilities by strengthening its partnership with Healthscope that has already generated more than 60 publications in the past four years, many of which are co-produced with Healthscope staff and consumer representatives.

La Trobe Private Hospital’s services are complemented by its sister hospital, Northpark Private Hospital, located just minutes away. Northpark Private Hospital offers a range of services, including ophthalmology, gynaecology, ENT and general surgery, along with maternity services and an early parenting unit. The hospital has also recently opened its expanded 56-bed mental health service which includes a dedicated older person’s mental health unit.

According to Healthscope, an important innovation at La Trobe Private was the implementation of a mobile CSSD (central sterile services department) where cleaning and sterilisation takes place at La Trobe Private Hospital’s sister hospital, Northpark Private Hospital, located a few minutes away. This service maximises efficiency across both hospitals.

Top image caption: External view of La Trobe Private Hospital. Image courtesy of Healthscope.