Work on the improvements at Muttaburra have already started, with the upgrades at Longreach and Winton expected to start later in the year.
Nearly $5.1 million worth of upgrading works have started at health facilities across the region, Central West Hospital and Health Service Chief Executive Anthony West says.
Mr West said the works included replacement of air conditioning chillers at Longreach Hospital, upgrading of the water treatment plant at Winton Multipurpose Health Service and improvements to staff safety systems at Muttaburra Primary Health Centre.
Work on the improvements at Muttaburra have already started, with the upgrades at Longreach and Winton expected to start later in the year.
The staff safety improvements at Muttaburra include swipe card access, a duress alarm system, nurse call buttons, CCTV, a new office and reception counter and better segregation between publically accessible areas and restricted areas within the facility.
The upgrades across all three facilities are expected to be completed by June next year.
“The safety of our patients, staff and visitors are always our highest priorities,’’ Mr West said.
“That’s why our health service undertakes a comprehensive review of the condition of all our built infrastructure every three to five years, with the last full review completed just this month (January),’’ he said.
“These reviews are designed to identify any current and upcoming infrastructure maintenance and improvement issues that we need to consider as part of our annual planning.
“Then, each year, as part of our normal budget planning, funding submissions are made for individual maintenance items in accordance with their prioritisation.
“These are subsequently considered for funding as part of the State Government’s overall state-wide infrastructure and asset plan – which is how the $5 million worth of works currently under way were funded.
“The highest priority items are always funded first, while lower priority items are placed on our deferred maintenance register.
“There’s always a lot of confusion about deferred maintenance.
“Deferred maintenance is a commonly used maintenance strategy utilised by all public and private sector industries and is defined as maintenance work that is postponed to a future budget cycle, or until funds become available.
“This work usually involves replacement of assets as they approach or reach the end of their normal lifecycle or to prevent further deterioration.
“All deferred maintenance items are risk assessed to identify any potential impact on services, and to ensure all facilities are always safe.
“They are items that will not immediately affect the current day-to-day operations of the health facilities in question, or the normal delivery of health services.
“However, their replacement, upgrading, repair or demolition must still be considered as part of the State Government’s overall state-wide infrastructure and asset plan as part of sensible future planning.
“Deferred maintenance enables organisations to carefully evaluate the priorities and risks of their built infrastructure portfolio by placing a focus on condition standards and assessing the most cost-effective solutions to maintain the desired building standard to continue delivering safe, quality health care.’’