Leeton Hospital Tour
Published on 19 August 2022
Last Friday members from Leeton Health Services Crisis Committee (LHSCC) and Leeton Shire Council were provided with a guided facility tour of Leeton Health Service (formally known as Leeton District Hospital) by key personnel of the (Murrumbidgee Local Health District).
The purpose of the facility tour was to gain a good understanding of what services currently operate from the site, and to identify what space might be available to consider new opportunities for inclusion in the Leeton Integrated Health Services Strategy Plan that will be developed later this year.
The group visited Carramar including the outdoor areas and heard of plans for the ground floor with new entry, reception area and access ramp. They also visited the general wards, maternity ward and the temporary emergency department while upgrades take place downstairs.
Council’s Mayor Tony Reneker said that it was heartening to see the actively used parts of the facility in good condition, describing them us “light, bright and airy” and by all accounts “well-functioning”.
“The new Emergency Department is going to be a tremendous improvement once it opens,” he said.
The group had also hoped to view the unused or less used parts of the Hospital – like the 3rd floor and the nurses’ quarters – to identify opportunities for alternative uses of the space and advocate for potential upgrades. Unfortunately, the third floor of the hospital has been decommissioned and the group was not permitted to enter the top floor for WHS reasons. They were also not able to visit the nurses’ quarters where only about one third of the rooms are occupied.
While extremely thankful for the opportunity to view the Hospital, Council General Manager Jackie Kruger said the group was disappointed to only be shown the areas that are operating and hopes to go back in the coming months to properly view the rest, as per the original viewing request to the MLHD.
“The MLHD is in the throes of preparing a Clinical Services Plan for Leeton and is seeking public input into what we think is needed to ensure we have appropriate health services into the future. While we can make general statements about what we think needs to be upgraded, it would be better to have seen everything we asked to see.:
At the back of the site, it was explained that the Community Health Building operates under a different NSW Health department, so its current purpose and state was also explained from outside the building.
Council’s Mayor Tony Reneker said it was good to get a deeper understanding of our major local health assets and discuss future opportunities for the Leeton Health Service facility.
“Many Leeton Shire residents remember this facility with a busy in and outpatient ward, large maternity turnover, a training program for registered nurses plus many other health services. Moving forward, we will be advocating to see several of these services reinstated within a fully utilised facility and modern staff accommodation, to name a few,’ he said.
“We know what Leeton District Hospital once was. We now need to look forward to the future and push for a facility that works for our community.”
To implement these opportunities, LHSCC and LSC are working together with the MLHD on finding out what the Leeton community needs, understanding missing gaps and find achievable solutions to providing these services to the Leeton community.
“Communities change and evolve and now is the perfect time to get an understanding of what the community wants and needs from their health services and create tailored solutions,” said LHSCC Chair, Mrs Maryann Iannelli.
If you haven’t already done so, please fill out the Health Services Survey https://bit.ly/3nknL79 and register for one of the health services workshops being held in next week https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/leetoncommunity.
Paper surveys are available at Leeton Shire reception, Leeton Library, Yanco Shop and Whitton Post Office. If you are having any difficulties filling out the survey, please contact Council on 6953 0911 for assistance.