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“Job done!” Peter Paul, president of the Phillip Island Medical and Health Action Group, and Bass MP Jordan Crugnale celebrate after the official opening of the
Phillip Island Community Hospital.
By Catherine Watson
BAYSIDE Health chair Martin Foley recalls visiting Cowes in 2021 in his capacity as Victorian Health Minister to confirm the location of the new Phillip Island Community Hospital.
“Before we arrived we were given a security briefing about these wild Islanders. We came around the corner and there was a group of fellers waiting so we sat down and had a chat.”
The formal opening of the new community hospital on Monday featured many such memories of angry words giving way first to dialogue and then to co-operation.
One of those“wild islanders” was Peter Paul, a former Bass Coast councillor and president of the Phillip Island Medical and Health Action Group (PIMHAG) since 2016.
“It’s been a challenge over 18 years," Mr Paul said. "We’ve lost four members over that time, people I treasured and loved.
"It wasn’t a yellow brick road, but it’s restored the faith in where we’re travelling.”
When the Warley Community Hospital closed in 2008 the overwhelming response was anger. Sure, Warley was little more than a nursing home and doctor’s surgery by the time it closed but it was theirs, something the community had built and nurtured. And there was nothing planned to replace it.
First they’d lost their council, now they’d lost their hospital. Phillip Islanders felt abandoned by governments of all stripes: federal, state and local, Labor and Liberal.
After the initial anger, Mr Paul said, they realised they had to be strategic if they were to achieve anything.
“We decided we could be part of the problem or part of the solution.
“Wonthaggi Hospital was also in a parlous state. That had to be restored before we could get something happening on Phillip Island."
The first breakthrough was the Phillip Island health hub, which opened in 2018, followed by the urgent care centre.
Now with the opening of the second stage, the community hospital incorporates haemodialysis, day surgery, specialist outpatient appointments, allied health services, clinical nurses consultant clinics, pathology and diagnostic imaging.
Close to home
You only have to talk to Brian Beardwater to understand what the new community hospital means to Phillip Islanders.
The Cape Woolamai resident was in the hospital’s haemodialysis unit on the second floor, as the visiting dignitaries were formally opening the hospital below.
Recently diagnosed with kidney failure, Brian is learning to live with the routine and demands of dialysis three days a week. Each session lasts four or five hours and by the time he finishes he’s exhausted.
“I’m so grateful that this is just a short drive from home. If I had to go to Frankston or Wonthaggi Hospital three times a week, I would find that very difficult.”
The local treatment also means he can fit treatment around his part-time employment at Phillip Island Nature Parks.
“I really appreciate the community aspect of this hospital. The staff have been great.”
Future stages – so far unfunded – are expected to include chemotherapy, public dental and women’s health services.
Paul recalled tears from some of the old-timers at an open day last year. “They said ‘Is this really for us?’”
"It wasn’t a yellow brick road, but it’s restored the faith in where we’re travelling.”
Peter Paul
He thanked Bass MP Jordan Crugnale for years of advocacy, and acknowledged the dedication of former Bass Coast Health CEO Jan Childs, who oversaw much of the development in partnership with Bass Coast Health’s chair Don Paproth.
Phillip Island Medical and Health Action Group members John Matthews, Gill Scrase, Peter Paul, Linda Marston, Keith Jobe and Bruce Procter.
In turn, Jordan Crugnale paid tribute to the PIMHAG members and other advocates. “People who dared to imagine what could be and committed to bringing it to life.
“They were like mozzies buzzing in your ear. They certainly kept the momentum going.
“Looking back now, I see a group of extraordinary leaders, advocates and community builders whose belief never wavered.”
Martin Foley put it this way. “It demonstrates what happens when the community, government and health sector come together. It’s really important that we recognise what we’ve achieved here together.”