At Albury Wodonga Health (AWH), we share with our community a profound commitment to a healthier, stronger future. Like you, AWH wants the very best for our region: state-of-the-art healthcare infrastructure that meets our growing needs and improves health outcomes for generations to come.
As the conversation around the current stage of the Albury Wodonga Regional Hospital Project, (the Project), continues to grow, so too does the need for a clear and factual chronology, setting out not only what has occurred, but why.
A Decade of Planning and Partnership:
Service planning for the Albury Wodonga Regional Hospital Project began in 2011, with a revised Services Plan completed in 2016. These plans are typically updated every five years. In 2019, AWH commissioned Cube Group to develop the 2021 Clinical Services Plan (CSP 2021), which was publicly released in April 2021 and is available on the AWH website. Based on 2019 population data (based on the 2016 Census), the CSP 2021 outlined several key recommendations and projections, including:
- Consolidating acute and sub-acute services to a single site to ensure safety and efficiency.
- To reduce the risk to the isolated care of unwell patients at Wodonga Campus and the transfer of patients between the Wodonga and Albury campuses consolidating all AWH’s critical care functions and services on one site.
- Collocating maternity and neonatal services with all other acute services, in particular ICU and paediatrics.
Early investment by NSW Ministry of Health and AWH enabled preliminary master planning to test the feasibility of delivering this vision on the Albury Campus. From late 2021 to mid-2022, both state governments engaged in extensive due diligence processes, working with AWH’s senior clinicians, executive and Board to ensure alignment of planning methodologies, clinical models, and infrastructure requirements.
Responding to Two Jurisdictions:
In mid-2022, Victoria required updated planning inputs including revised population and capacity projections, a refreshed Schedule of Accommodation and new costings using the Victorian Health Building Authority (VHBA) methodology. The CSP Review 2022 was commissioned to meet this requirement. This process included direct input from senior AWH clinicians and healthcare leaders.
The revised Clinical Services Plan, Master Plan and Addendum was supported by the Project Control Group, on which senior AWH clinical leaders were represented, on 1 September 2022.
Funding Confirmed: October 2022:
On 27 October 2022, the NSW and Victorian Premiers jointly announced a $558 million investment to deliver the Project. This included:
- $225 million each from NSW and Victoria.
- $20 million from the Commonwealth.
- Integration of $45 million (NSW) for the Acute Services Upgrade.
- $40 million (NSW) for the Mental Health Inpatient Unit, and,
- $3 million (NSW) for the Mental Health Crisis and Assessment Unit.
Refining Capacity and Planning Horizons:
Cross-border governance remains a unique feature of this project. While AWH is a Victorian health service, the lead delivery agency for the Project is NSW Health Infrastructure, bringing together two different sets of planning methodologies, governance frameworks, timelines, cost models, and planning horizons.
In July 2023, following ongoing discussions, AWH received official confirmation that the project would align to a 10-year planning horizon to 2032, consistent with NSW Health Infrastructure’s approach. This differed from the 15-year projection used by Victoria.
A revised infrastructure capacity table was issued by NSW Ministry of Health, informed by the CSP Review 2022 and updated population modelling. Following feedback from AWH, the table was adjusted for ICU, ED and Day Surgery and reissued. While this table supported many of AWH’s assumptions, it did not fully align with the CSP 2022 projections. The Project then progressed into Concept Design.
What the Redevelopment Will Deliver:
We appreciate the interest in final bed number figures. Available beds on any given day are dynamic and evolving based on daily care needs for our community. By way of example, at the Albury and Wodonga hospital campuses we currently have 306 available overnight admitted care points (a fixed, physical point of care where a patient stays overnight). Upon project completion, and with the current funding envelope, the current Project scope is forecast to deliver an uplift of 110 beds to this total.
However, figures alone do not reflect the dynamic nature of how and where care is delivered in a contemporary hospital setting. Programs such as Hospital in the Home (HITH) and Paediatrics in the Child’s Home (PATCH) enable care to be delivered outside traditional inpatient settings, when safe and appropriate to do so. These models reduce pressure on hospital beds while supporting patient outcomes through safe, connected care in the comfort of the consumer’s own home – enhancing flexibility and systems efficiency across the service. Continued work and advocacy for increased digital investment, such as funding and implementation of an Electronic Medical Record (EMR); working with our Region’s community and primary health sector; and advancing our collaborative endeavours within the Hume Local Health Service Network, are all extremely vital for ensuring AWH can increase its capability to ensure ongoing, safe care for our community.
It is important to note that while capital funding may deliver infrastructure capacity, operational funding is required from both states to open and staff these beds. This distinction is evident in our new Short Stay Unit, which has been funded by the Victorian Department of Health to operate 9 of the 16 beds from 1 July 2025.
Value Management and Clinical Priorities:
In early 2024, as a standard part of state government facility planning in all major capital projects, a formal value management process was undertaken by NSW Health Infrastructure to bring the Project within its $558 million budget. AWH executives and several senior AWH clinicians worked alongside representatives from both jurisdictions to prioritise scope inclusions. As a result, a number of components such as the planned helipad were removed from the scope. One operating theatre, the paediatric ward, education and library areas, and some outpatient rooms will be built as shell spaces, to be fitted out as future funding allows. Additionally, a strategic decision was made to keep sub-acute services, some specialist outpatients, and three operating theatres at the Wodonga campus.
Concurrently, the Victorian Department of Health, with senior AWH clinician involvement, led the development of the Wodonga Entity Services Plan (ESP), an early concept that positions the Wodonga Campus as a hub for non-emergency and subacute services - including day procedures, dialysis, rehabilitation, geriatric medicine, outpatient consultations, and allied health - complementing the acute services at the Albury Campus. The Victorian Government then announced that any further master planning and service planning for the Wodonga Campus will occur in mid to late 2026. While the ESP provides a conceptual foundation, no final decisions or determinations over future investment for the Wodonga Campus have been made, and any future changes will require master planning and a comprehensive assessment of clinical service demand, capacity and workforce. The ESP is available on our website.
Looking Ahead: A Commitment to Stage One and Beyond:
While this stage of the Project is foundational and transformative, it is only the first step. The current scope is designed to meet community needs through to 2032; but long-range service planning indicates further investment will be required to meet demand beyond that horizon.
AWH remains committed to advancing subsequent stages of development across both the Albury and Wodonga campuses. This Project is far more than infrastructure - it is about securing the capacity to deliver safe, modern, and sustainable care to a growing and ageing population, with increasingly complex health concerns. Sustained cross-border and bipartisan support and strategic collaboration will be vital to fully realise the vision of delivering fit-for-purpose facilities and equipment which are safe, sustainable and enable the delivery of contemporary and therapeutic care.
Delays or interruptions at this critical juncture would risk significant setbacks, potentially adding years to the planning and delivery timeline, profoundly impacting the accessibility of safe, connected care for our Border community. We remain focused on progressing this vital work with transparency, diligence, and a shared commitment to advancing the health and wellbeing of our region.
Jonathan Green, Board Chairperson, Albury Wodonga Health
Bill Appleby, Chief Executive Officer, Albury Wodonga Health