New accommodation to help bring health workers to Wonthaggi

WONTHAGGI Hospital opened 20 brand-new accommodation units on Monday October 19, hoping they will help attract healthcare workers and free up local rental homes as the hospital prepares to add another 10 to 20 nurses next year.

The self-contained Williamsons Sounds Apartments provide a much-needed alternative to housing staff in local motels and rental properties.

And the need is growing.

Bayside Health Regional Care Group chief executive Louise Sparkes said the hospital needed more doctors and nurses, with changes to nursing ratios next year expected to require another 10 to 20 nurses across Wonthaggi's emergency department and ward.

"We're always on the lookout for more specialists and more doctors as we grow," Ms Sparkes said.

Podiatry remains the hardest allied health discipline to recruit, she said, with physiotherapists also among the professionals needed.

Ms Sparkes said comfortable accommodation could influence where healthcare workers from outside the region choose to take their talents.

"Obviously you want to be able to offer something that's nice and comfortable for medical professionals that are coming down, because they have choices of where they want to go, and so you want to make it attractive," she said.

The location also allows on-call staff to park their cars and walk to the hospital, while the units feature cooking and laundry facilities that make them more attractive than a traditional motel room.

Shared indoor and outdoor spaces give residents somewhere to spend time with colleagues after work.

It is also hoped that the benefits will extend beyond recruitment.

State Bass MP Jordan Crugnale said at the opening that Bass Coast Health had, until recently, rented about 26 homes in Wonthaggi to accommodate workers.

Moving staff into the new facility could help release homes for the wider community.

Ms Sparkes said the health service would shift people from other accommodation over time.

Bayside Health board chair Martin Foley said the project would contribute to addressing housing stress in a tight local market.

Wonthaggi Hospital director of medicine Dr Meor Azraai said staff feedback had shaped the building, with junior clinicians wanting somewhere to unwind together and senior staff seeking accommodation suitable for partners and children.

In many ways, he was the perfect man to help unveil the project, as he understood those needs firsthand.

Dr Azraai began working at Wonthaggi as a registrar, when having somewhere nearby to rest between long shifts made a difference.

Later, as an on-call consultant, he needed to reach the hospital quickly during emergencies.

He now believes that supporting staff could help the hospital retain clinicians and expand care locally.

"When we look after our staff, they can do what they do best: look after the people of Bass Coast."

Ms Sparkes said the accommodation would also offer security for nursing students on placement and help staff who arrived without cars.

A lack of parking has also long been a headache for the hospital, but Ms Sparkes said that additional parking at the front and rear should free up more hospital spaces for patients.

The project received funding through the State Government's Regional Worker Accommodation Fund.

Dr Azraai said the accommodation also created opportunities to grow training programs, with supported junior staff more likely to return as senior clinicians.

"When we can recruit and retain the right people, we can sustain and expand the services that Bass Coast need to rely on, so fewer patients and families need to travel for care."