Historic date for opening of new Westmead Hospital building confirmed

It’s official! The opening of the Central Acute Services Building (CASB) at the Westmead Health Precinct is now less than a year away.

20 October 2020 has been confirmed as the date when the new hospital begins to transform western Sydney’s health for generations to come.

Services will be phased into the building to ensure the safest transition of departments relocating from Westmead Hospital and The Children’s Hospital at Westmead.

The 14-storey CASB is a key component of the $1.1 billion Westmead Redevelopment. It will host several adult and children’s services, including two new emergency departments, pharmacy, imaging and state-of-the-art operating suites.

Described by NSW Health Minister Brad Hazzard as the “jewel in the crown of our state’s health”, the CASB represents the cornerstone to further cement Westmead’s glowing reputation as a global health, education and research hub.

The new hospital will increase integration between Westmead Hospital, The Children’s Hospital at Westmead and the University of Sydney.

Western Sydney Local Health District chief executive said Graeme Loy said the opening of the new building will be a game-changer for western Sydney.

“The new facilities will help future-proof health outcomes and experiences for patients, carers, families, staff, students and communities in the nation’s fastest-growing population,” Graeme said.

“Ground-breaking medical studies and research discoveries will also benefit Australians.

“For our hospital staff, they will love walking into a brand new building that’s contemporary and fresh. It’ll be a brand new era for Westmead.”

Sydney Children’s Hospitals Network chief executive Cheryl McCullagh said the countdown was a significant milestone for the network.

“We will have a brand new children’s Emergency Department, a paediatric short-stay unit and additional children’s operating theatres in the new hospital building, all of which will significantly improve the way we care for current and future generations of sick and injured children in NSW,” Ms McCullagh said.

“The shared Innovation Centre will be a great example of how collaboration leads to creative, strategic thinking and fosters new ideas and discoveries.

This building will perfectly encapsulate this sense of working together at the Westmead Health Precinct.”

The University of Sydney’s Vice-Chancellor and Principal Dr Michael Spence AC said the new centralised space would help embed research and teaching across the precinct.

“This will be of immeasurable benefit to the thousands of University staff, affiliates and students who currently work or study at Westmead,” Dr Spence said.

“We’ve committed $500 million to the wider precinct, and the CASB is just one part of our once-in-a-century plan for a world-class multi-disciplinary campus in western Sydney to improve the lives of the people of western Sydney and beyond.”

Find out more about the Westmead Redevelopment here: http://www.westmeadproject.health.nsw.gov.au/