Barwon Women’s and Children’s

The new Barwon Women’s and Children’s will integrate with existing University Hospital Geelong services and will deliver additional capacity to meet increasing demand in the Barwon South West region.

The new facilities will provide more:

• maternity inpatient beds
• paediatric multi-day/same day inpatient beds
• special care nursery cots
• birthing suites
• operating theatres
• expanded paediatric and maternity specialist (outpatient) facilities.

The new Barwon Women’s and Children’s aims to achieve the following benefits:

Safe and welcoming spaces

The new facilities will deliver integrated healthcare that is family friendly, culturally safe, high quality and accessible.

Purpose-built spaces for children and young people, including overnight and same-day beds, outpatient clinic rooms and dedicated theatres, will help make medical care less scary and intimidating.

Local access

Increased service capacity will provide more access for people living locally, meaning more families can access the care they need, close to home.

Construction of the new facilities will support the modernisation of University Hospital Geelong. This will help meet the needs of the local community now and into the future.

Improved patient experience and staff safety

A modern design and layout, including the colocation of services, will improve patient flow to deliver a safer and more efficient workplace for staff and seamless care for patients.

A community consultative committee is being established to support the development of the Barwon Women’s and Children’s.

The committee will provide a forum for members of the local community to participate in the project’s ongoing planning.

The role and purpose of the community consultative committee is to:

• provide advice on local community health and social needs
• represent the community’s diverse views
• provide advice on emerging issues, opportunities and priorities of the local community.

The new Barwon Women’s and Children’s Community Consultative Committee will be chaired by the Member for Geelong, Christine Couzens.

The committee will include:

• representatives from Barwon Health as the operator of the new hospital
• representatives from City of Greater Geelong council
• a diverse cross-section of the community, to ensure local views and ideas are incorporated into the planning and design process.

Expressions of interest to join the committee are now open and will close at 9.00 am, Friday 16 June.

Find out more about becoming a member.

Where will the new Barwon Women’s and Children’s be located?

The new Barwon Women’s and Children’s will be built within the University Hospital Geelong precinct.

Will this be a public hospital? Who will operate the Barwon Women’s and Children’s?

Barwon Health will continue to operate women’s and children’s services at University Hospital Geelong. Barwon Health is a public health service.

How much funding has been committed?

The Victorian Government committed more than $500 million in funding for the new Barwon Women’s and Children’s in the 2022-23 State Budget.

The total estimated investment includes $50 million in funding from the Commonwealth Government as part of the Community Health and Hospitals Program agreement.

Will there be an emergency department in the Barwon Women’s and Children’s?

The Victorian Government is also investing $20 million to deliver a new emergency department zone for children at University Hospital Geelong.

The dedicated paediatric zone will be located within the existing emergency department. It will have its own entrance and will provide a calm and comfortable environment for children and their families.

The new Barwon Women’s and Children’s will be designed to ensure easy access from the new children’s emergency facilities as part of an integrated hospital precinct.

Why is Barwon Women’s and Children’s being built?

The new Barwon Women’s and Children’s will deliver extra capacity to meet the growing needs of Geelong and surrounding communities.

The demand for women’s and children’s services in the region is expected to increase significantly in coming years. This is being driven by the growing population in the region.

Barwon Women’s and Children’s will provide expanded facilities at University Hospital Geelong to allow more families to access care locally, minimising the need to travel to Melbourne.

When is construction expected to start?

Early site demolition works started in November 2022 with the demolition of Myers House on the corner of Myers and Bellerine streets.

Site planning will continue throughout 2023, paving the way for construction of the new Barwon Women’s and Children’s facilities.

Will services at University Hospital Geelong be impacted during construction?

We are committed to minimising disruptions and ensuring the accessibility, safety and wellbeing of staff and community are supported at all times during construction.

Will nearby residents and businesses be impacted during construction?

We will work closely with contractors and Barwon Health to minimise disruptions to neighbouring residents and businesses.

Works notices will be issued to nearby residents and businesses in advance of any expected disruptions such as changes to traffic or works expected to generate noise or dust.

This project is being delivered by the Victorian Health Building Authority in partnership with Barwon Health.

The Commonwealth Government has provided $50 million in funding for the Barwon Women’s and Children’s as part of the Community Health and Hospitals Program agreement.