Major healthcare boost for Toowoomba community

• The new Bunya Day Surgery is officially open and will provide more care, sooner for the Darling Downs region.
• Ground has also broken on the new $1.3 billion Toowoomba Hospital at the Baillie Henderson Hospital campus.
• The new Toowoomba Hospital project will deliver 118 additional beds.

The Miles Government is boosting health care for the growing Darling Downs community with the opening of the new Bunya Day Surgery and work commencing on the new Toowoomba Hospital.

The new $42 million day surgery includes two new theatres that will provide capacity for an additional 4,000 surgeries annually.

Since opening its doors last month, more than 30 patients have already received treatment and the service will provide the ability to deliver simple procedures that eradicate the need for a hospital stay.

The Minister has also turned the sod for the new $1.3 billion Toowoomba Hospital, marking the start of construction.

The new hospital will deliver additional emergency treatment spaces, including medical imaging, pharmacy and pathology services, as well as administration, education and training facilities for hospital staff.

Updated concept renders of the planned hospital released today show what the project might look like, with further detailed design to be completed in the coming months.

The construction of the hospital is estimated to support more than 3,000 local construction jobs. Completion is expected in the second half of 2027.

The new Hospital is part of the Miles Labor Government’s record-breaking $14 billion Health Big Build, under Queensland’s Big Build initiative.

The plan to deliver new and expanded hospitals helps ensure continued access to world-class healthcare for rapidly growing regions – boosting capacity through expansions to 11 existing hospitals, building three new hospitals, seven satellite and building a dedicated cancer centre.

Queensland’s Health Big Build is delivering over 3,300 additional hospital beds, including 199 in 2023 and 239 in 2024.

Link to renders.

Quotes attributable to the Minister for Health Shannon Fentiman:

“It’s fantastic to officially open the new Bunya Day Surgery as construction gets underway on the new Toowoomba Hospital.

“These projects are providing more health care and importantly, thousands of local jobs during construction and following completion.

“We know that the LNP government failed to deliver a single piece of health infrastructure when they were in government. 

“And the Shadow Health Minister Ros Bates has continually refused to apologise for calling regional health care workers ‘duds’.

“I want to especially thank our hardworking health heroes for the care they provide to the Darling Downs community.

“They are saving lives every day and we wouldn’t be able to deliver high quality healthcare without their compassion and dedication.

“The Miles Government is building the health facilities the growing Toowoomba region needs now and into the future.”

Quotes attributable to Darling Downs Health Chief Executive Annette Scott PSM:

“This is a historic day for the Health Service as construction begins on this generational infrastructure project.

“Darling Downs Health has an incredibly strong network of hospital and multipurpose health facilities, and the New Toowoomba Hospital will further strengthen that network to provide exceptional care to the communities we serve.

“When we open this facility, I expect it to be a model of what a contemporary hospital can be, one that is not only patient-centred and focused on the wellbeing of the community and our staff but has an amenity and feel that sets a new standard for the industry.”

Quotes attributable to Darling Downs Health Board Chair Dr Dennis Campbell:

“Each year we see almost 160,000 people through our emergency departments, over 230,000 outpatient appointments, and almost 3,000 babies born at Darling Downs Health. The New Toowoomba Hospital will increase our capacity and capability in providing care to our diverse communities.

“Health remains the largest employer in the Toowoomba region, and I’m confident with works underway on the new Toowoomba Hospital, along with construction commencing on the new rural facilities in Tara and Millmerran, planned upgrades in Jandowae and the recently announced rebuild in Chinchilla that Darling Downs Health will become a destination of choice for clinical staff seeking a regional and rural healthcare experience.”

ENDS