Canberra Coronavirus Field Hospital

The Canberra Coronavirus Field Hospital is a temporary hospital in Canberra, Australia created in preparation of the 2020 COVID-19 pandemic.[1] The hospital was constructed by Aspen Medical,[2] a Canberra-based company specialising in temporary hospital construction,[3] and is located on Garran Oval to the northeast of the existing Canberra Hospital campus.[4]

Coronavirus Field Hospital
The proposed location of the hospital
General information
StatusIn operation
TypeField hospital
ClassificationHospital
Address123 Kitchner Street, Garran, ACT, Australia
Town or cityCanberra
CountryAustralia
Coordinates35.34305°S 149.1018914°E / -35.34305; 149.1018914
Elevation603 metres
Groundbreaking9 April 2020
Estimated completionMay 2020
Opened21 May 2020
CostA$23 million
OwnerACT Government
Design and construction
Main contractorAspen Medical

History

The project was announced on 9 April 2020.[5] At that time 84 patients in Canberra had been diagnosed with COVID-19, 9 of whom were in hospital.[6] Construction began that day[7][8] and was expected to cost A$23 million .[9] On 21 May 2020, the hospital was opened after only 37 days of construction.[10][11] Shortly after, on 24 May 2020, ACT health authorities announced the hospital would likely remain unused due to the successful prevention of a major outbreak in the territory.[12] This would also bring the cost of the project down to A$14 million .[13][14]

Staff and facility

The facility will be staffed by 200 medical professionals, and will add 44 beds[15] and six resuscitation bays[16] to Canberra's medical system, making it a major part of the ACT Government's efforts to triple intensive care capacity from 50 to 170 beds.[17] Additionally, infrastructure like power, water, sewerage, and covered walkways connecting it to the Canberra Hospital are to be constructed for the facility.[16]

See also

References
  1. Media, Newstate (8 April 2020). "Garran Oval to house temporary COVID-19 ED". Canberra Weekly. Retrieved 11 April 2020.
  2. Bushnell, Ian. "Aspen Medical to build COVID-19 ED at Canberra Hospital". The RiotACT. Retrieved 11 April 2020.
  3. "Deployable Mobile Hospitals". www.aspenmedical.com. 15 September 2013. Retrieved 11 April 2020.
  4. Jervis-Bardy, Dan (9 April 2020). "ACT's $23m coronavirus ED to be built on Garran oval". The Canberra Times. Retrieved 11 April 2020.
  5. Chief Minister, Treasury and Economic Development (9 April 2020). "Temporary COVID-19 Emergency Department". COVID-19. Retrieved 11 April 2020.
  6. Chief Minister, Treasury and Economic Development (1 April 2020). "COVID-19 update – 1 April 2020". COVID-19. Retrieved 11 April 2020.
  7. Bushnell, Ian. "UPDATED: Temporary COVID-19 ED on Garran Oval will have 200 staff". The RiotACT. Retrieved 11 April 2020.
  8. Brown, Andrew (9 April 2020). "Work begins on temporary coronavirus ED at Garran Oval". The Canberra Times. Retrieved 12 April 2020.
  9. "Dedicated coronavirus field hospital to be constructed in Canberra, opening next month". www.msn.com. Retrieved 11 April 2020.
  10. "ABC Canberra". www.facebook.com. Archived from the original on 21 May 2020. Retrieved 21 May 2020.
  11. Brown, Andrew (21 May 2020). "Inside Canberra's pop-up COVID-19 hospital". The Canberra Times. Retrieved 21 May 2020.
  12. Editor, Letters to the (28 May 2020). "Far too early to say we won't need Garran's field hospital". The Canberra Times. Retrieved 28 June 2020.CS1 maint: extra text: authors list (link)
  13. "'We had no idea whether we would be successful': Why a field hospital was built on a Canberra cricket ground". www.abc.net.au. 23 May 2020. Retrieved 28 June 2020.
  14. Samaras, Denholm (21 May 2020). "Inside the ACT's makeshift COVID-19 surge centre". Canberra Weekly. Retrieved 28 June 2020.
  15. Lowrey, Tom (2 April 2020). "Four new cases of COVID-19 in Canberra as plans for emergency hospital expansion announced". ABC News. Retrieved 11 April 2020.
  16. Brown, Andrew (9 April 2020). "Work begins on temporary coronavirus ED at Garran Oval". The Canberra Times. Retrieved 11 April 2020.
  17. Brewer, Lucy Bladen Peter (8 April 2020). "ACT to treble number of ICU beds ahead of winter". The Canberra Times. Retrieved 11 April 2020.
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