Specialist infusion services added to Caboolture, Kilcoy and Woodford service offering

The Bribie Island Satellite Hospital (Yarun) opens in July 2024 and will provide same-day care and ongoing management for patients with chronic conditions requiring infusions.

Lesley Murphy is the Project Lead for the Day Medical Treatment Unity (DMTU) and is responsible for helping to establish the new service at the Bribie Island Satellite Hospital.

“As a healthcare provider, we always want to deliver the best possible care to patients,” Lesley said.

“When new services are developed, we want to make sure the services we are creating are well-planned, responsive to community needs and, importantly, factor in every consideration from the beginning to the end of the patient journey.

“This means the model of care (which describes the service and how it is delivered) must be innovative and challenge the existing thinking. As an example, the Bribie Island Satellite Hospital DMTU has demonstrated innovation by developing a nurse-led model that uses highly-skilled nursing staff to deliver the prescribed care.”

When the DTMU service is fully operational, approximately 100 patients per week will be able to access care closer to home, without the need to travel long distances.

“Minimising the need for people to travel outside the region as much as clinically possible, is an increasingly important factor in service design because it helps to improve patient satisfaction and outcomes,” said Lesley.

“However other factors such as the quality of the service, the ease of making appointments and having well-planned processes and quality standards also influence patient outcomes.”

The new DMTU will be governed by Caboolture Hospital. Executive Director Karlene Willcocks said providing specialist care to the community is key to keeping people well, treating and managing acute illness and long-term conditions, and supporting people to live independently.

“As the Caboolture, Kilcoy and Woodford (CKW) Directorate expands through the addition of the satellite hospitals, and other new buildings, not only do the patient and staff experiences improve, but our ability to offer new services like the DMTU, as well as grow and innovate our existing services is also supported,” said Karlene.

“This really positions the whole of the CKW directorate as a healthcare provider that is modern and responsive. It reinforces our dedication to excellence in healthcare for our regional community.”

The DMTU will be staffed by registered nurses who have specialised training in infusion and intravenous therapies and provide care for people who need treatment of chronic medical conditions, such as:

• Neurologic disorders
• Respiratory disorders
• Haemoglobin and blood disorders
• Rheumatoid disorders
• Gastroenterological disorders
• Immune deficiencies
• Iron deficiencies

The Bribie Island Satellite Hospital DMTU will be open Monday-Friday from 8.00am to 4.00pm.