Plea for struggling Warley Hospital

Aged and Community Care Victoria CEO Gerard Mansour has appealed to the Victorian and Federal governments to provide urgent assistance to Phillip Island’s Warley Hospital (pictured).

The private facility with 13 acute beds and 35 residential aged care places is facing significant funding problems.

Facility managers warned yesterday that the situation was so bad they were considering selling off medical equipment to save the hospital from closure.

Mr Mansour told Australian Ageing Agenda that the problem has arisen, in part, as a result of the hospital’s unique situation.

“Because it is a coastal resort town the numbers are always fluctuating,” he said.

“It has a population of about 8000 but it’s also where you’ve got the penguins and the grand prix race track so you have a burgeoning population and constant changes in the demand for beds.

“It’s in particularly unusual circumstance and one of the real challenges is coming up with the right service model.”

The unusual setting also means Warley Hospital often struggles with low occupancy rates – yesterday only 7 acute and 22 aged care beds were filled – and a shortage of key staff.

“There have been changes in the senior management levels,” said Mr Mansour. “Unfortunately the former CEO passed away and the DON left and they have had trouble replacing them.”

“Those workforce issues are exacerbated by it being in a rural community and the other critical problem is that it’s an old building.

“If we are going to solve the problem we need the state and federal governments to cooperate because it needs a major capital redevelopment,” he said.