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The Williamstown Hospital - Railway Crescent, Williamstown, Victoria, 3016
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The Williamstown Hospital is Victoria's oldest suburban hospital and offers emergency, acute medical and surgical, aged care and rehabilitation services to Melbourne's West. In September 2006, Victorian Premier Steve Bracks officially opened a new $3.2 million Emergency Department which is more spacious in layout than the previous department. The patient and visitor waiting area are larger and more comfortable with facilities to provide greater privacy. There is also a separate isolation room for the management of patients with suspected contagious conditions. More than 80% of the hospital has been redeveloped over recent years, providing enhanced facilities for patients and staff. Williamstown has strong links with the local community, including a well-developed GP base and effective partnerships with other community health providers. The Williamstown Hospital has been serving the local community for well over 100 years. It opened in 1894, when the community responded to the increasing risk of accidents from a busy port, the railway workshops and the growing industrial area of Newport, Spotswood and Footscray to establish Melbourne's first suburban public general hospital. Starting out with just six beds, the Hospital continued to expand with the addition of the Male Ward in 1911 and the Female Ward in 1917. When the Main Ward Block was built in 1937, the bed capacity reached 64. The subsequent opening of the Isabella Caithness Maternity Wing in 1955, the Donald Coutts Children's Ward in 1963, and the Bill Dooley Rehabilitation Wing in 1971, brought the main hospital accommodation to 121. In 1999/2000, the hospital underwent major redevelopment costing $12.35 million. In May 2000, the hospital unveiled the new Aged Care Unit and the Fred Thomas Community Rehabilitation Centre, with a focus on enabling older people to successfully return to their own home environment rather than nursing home care. The Williamstown Hospital's expansion through the years has depended greatly on the committed support of local residents. The small band of people who first established our hospital in 1894 has grown to thousands of friends and supporters who continue to assist as volunteers, fundraisers and donors. Services Available: Emergency Department, General Acute Medical and Surgical Services, Early Parenting Day Stay Centre, Community Rehabilitation, and Aged Care (including geriatric care and evaluation), Interim Care. |
