Renovations and refurbishment for rehabilitation hospital

3 Sep 2018

3 September 2018 

We recently celebrated the completion of the renovations, including new and upgraded patient rooms, new public spaces and consulting rooms, and upgraded rehabilitation areas.

St John of God Frankston Rehabilitation Hospital Director of Clinical Services Sally Faulkner said the most critical component of the refurbishment was the increased number of single rooms.

“We have converted our three and four-bed rooms to two-bed rooms and refurbished all our bathrooms, on top of creating four brand new patient rooms,” she said.

“This provides our patients with greater comfort and privacy, particularly for those who are staying with us for an extended period of time.

“Furthermore, we looked at how our patients access the hospital and installed new front and rear entrances to make it easier for patients as well as vehicles that transport patients after surgery or injury.”

Our services in southeast Melbourne

The upgrades to St John of God Frankston Rehabilitation Hospital contribute to our commitment to enhancing the health services offered in the southeast Melbourne region.

In this region, as well as the specialist rehabilitation hospital, we also offer dedicated mental health care through St John of God Pinelodge Clinic and acute hospital services through the new St John of God Berwick Hospital.

St John of God Health Care Chief Operating Officer Hospitals Bryan Pyne said these services would continue to grow when the former Berwick hospital site was transformed into a combined rehabilitation and mental health service.

“This is a time of significant growth in our region and going forward we will be able to offer a broad range of targeted rehabilitation and mental health services, which will not only improve healthcare in the region but also present opportunities to expand our capacity,” he said.

“Our vision is to be unquestionably the market leader in these clinical streams in our community and broader regional Victoria.”

The refurbishment

The refurbishment included: 

• refurbishment of 46 rooms and ensuites, including building four new patient rooms
• new spaces on ground floor including: extended foyer with airlock entry, new Chapel, three new consulting rooms, multipurpose room and café
• improved spaces on first level including occupational therapy kitchen, gym, outpatient waiting room and upgraded pharmacy
• relocation of the ambulance entrance to a new undercover area at the rear of hospital improving traffic flow and ease of patient entry
• many behind-the-scenes mechanical and services were upgraded including a new 17-tonne generator, upgraded air-conditioning and plumbing.

Sally said the refurbishment was welcomed by patients, families and caregivers alike.

“We conducted the refurbishment in stages, to minimise the impact on our inpatient and outpatient services,” she said.

“There was a buzz of excitement as each stage finished and we are so pleased with the result.

“Our caregivers’ and contractors’ efforts to ‘keep calm and carry on’ during the refurbishment works whilst supporting our patients and families during this time has been wonderful.”