Murrumbidgee Local Health District Chief Executive Jill Ludford has taken a swipe at residents and Griffith media saying there’s been too little attention paid to the Griffith Base Hospital’s proposed multi-million-dollar upgrade.
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Ms Ludford submitted a letter to the editor to The Area News on Wednesday afternoon suggesting the community’s worries have been driven by content in the media and on Facebook over the past few weeks.
She also suggested facts have been ‘lost’ in negative commentary, and urges residents to work together to attract specialist clinicians to live and work in Griffith.
The recent public outcry was a result of a NSW Pathology's decision to outsource some of its Griffith services to Wagga, leaving two local skilled staff without jobs.
The decision was reversed last week.
The letter
I want to assure Griffith district residents Griffith Base Hospital (GBH) is not being downgraded.
Understandably, the community is worried about what they have read and seen in the media and on Facebook in recent weeks.
To the contrary, we are embarking on a multi-million dollar state-of-the-art redevelopment, which will bring with it new services and new ways of providing care.
This fact has been lost in the recent negative commentary.
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As announced by the Premier in June, $35 million has been committed for the first stage of a major redevelopment which will modernise and expand the facility.
The completed redevelopment will underpin the hospital’s vital role to the city and surrounding communities into the future.
We are committed to a strong future for GBH and this proposed new hospital will greatly enhance our ability to provide improved specialist services for patients across the Griffith region.
However we are acutely aware that one of our biggest challenges is attracting a skilled workforce to the city to take up medical, nursing and allied health vacancies.
Let’s work together and harness our energy to attract specialist clinicians to live and work in Griffith.
I invite you to read the feature in today’s paper which highlights our recent investments in GBH and what is planned for the future.
Please contact us at mlhd-feedback@health.nsw.gov.au
Jill Ludford, Chief Executive Murrumbidgee Local Health District.
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