The redeveloped healthcare facility sits on two sites. A new acute care hospital and a new mental health unit are now located beside the existing Edith Cavell Hospital, with a new integrated care centre located on the current District Hospital site. Brookfield Multiplex led a consortium of architects, health planners and engineers called “Progress Health” to bring the development to life.

Key technical challenges

Robert Bird Group designed the structure to meet the strict serviceability criteria required in a modern hospital. Several structural frames were considered before adopting the Corus-developed ‘Slimdeck’ system of composite steel and concrete. This provided unobstructed services distribution/installation whilst reducing foundation loads over a conventional flat slab. Shallow pad footings were used instead of piled foundations.

Additional features of the mental health unit comprise a central, two-storey administration block, surrounded by single-storey pavilions. The integrated care center provides non-acute and intermediate care within the community in a “non-hospital” setting. The building uses a hybrid reinforced concrete structural steel frame which provides flexible accommodation within a confined site. The new acute care hospital and mental health unit have been designed to allow the existing hospital to remain fully operational during the construction and commissioning of the new facilities.