Member for the Dubbo Electorate Dugald Saunders has today announced that a re-elected NSW Liberal and Nationals Government will invest $600,000 to develop a masterplan for the continued transformation of health care across Dubbo, Narromine and Wellington.
“Thanks to this current government, Dubbo Hospital and the Western Cancer Centre have become world-class facilities, offering services that are traditionally reserved for larger metropolitan cities,” Mr Saunders said.
“I’m excited to share today that a re-elected NSW Liberal and Nationals Government will invest $600,000 to develop a masterplan to complete the final stage of Dubbo Hospital’s redevelopment and map out the future investment in Wellington Hospital and Narromine’s Health Service.”
The masterplan for Dubbo Hospital will look at potential future investment in new services including inpatient wards, specialist rehabilitation and paediatric zones as well as enhancements to palliative care, mental health care and integration between primary, allied and community health services on site.
Minister for Regional Health Bronnie Taylor said the funding will also see plans for a redevelopment of Wellington Health Service to address the ageing infrastructure and will help progress a new hybrid, comprehensive, integrated health services model in Narromine.
“It is only the NSW Liberal and Nationals that are committed to future-proofing health care in the bush – that is our track record. We will continue to ensure our rural and regional communities have the health facilities they need and deserve,” Mrs Taylor said.
“We are also investing in our workforce, with regional communities reaping the rewards of our $883 million incentive scheme. Across the Western NSW Local Health District 694 existing health workers have been retained through the package, with a further 60 new health workers recruited to some of our most critical and hardest-to-fill rolls.”
Since 2011, the government has delivered more than 180 hospitals and health facilities across NSW, with more than 130 projects currently underway – of those, more than 90 are in rural and regional areas.