New Command Centre at Sunshine Coast University Hospital helps to support patient flow

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The official opening of the Command Centre at the Sunshine Coast University Hospital.
The official opening of the Command Centre at the Sunshine Coast University Hospital.

Construction is complete on a $3.1 million state-of-the-art Command Centre at Sunshine Coast University Hospital.

The focus of the purpose-built command centre is to ensure local patients have access to a hospital bed when needed, as it gives staff a service-wide view of bed demand, capacity, and patient flow.

Queensland Ambulance Service staff will also be based within the Command Centre, allowing the two services to work closely together and ensuring patients receive care in the most appropriate place.

The total investment for the project is $5 million, including $1.9 million in infrastructure and ICT improvements for other Sunshine Coast Health facilities to link in with the Command Centre.

In the most recent reporting quarter (April, May, June 2023) 53,804 people accessed a Sunshine Coast Health emergency department
This included 10 per cent more category one presentations compared to the same time in 2022.

Sunshine Coast Health Chief Executive Dr Peter Gillies explained how the new Command Centre uses real-time data and modelling to monitor and coordinate patient arrivals, admissions, and departures.

“It means we can help ensure a patient’s journey to the hospital, their care within the hospital, and their discharge is as seamless as possible with many different health professionals involved in the care along the way.”

“This state-of-the-art facility will not only support the day-to-day overall operational management for our hospitals providing a better experience for patients, but it also integrates with our emergency response service, meaning Sunshine Coast Health will be further supported in any internal or external emergency.

“I want to thank our dedicated Sunshine Coast Health clinicians, Queensland Ambulance Service, and support teams for the work they do to provide high-quality person-centred care.”