Health Minister Brad Hazzard was in Cobar yesterday to inspect the new facility.
Minister Hazzard was joined by local Aboriginal elder Joan Evans, who delivered the welcome to country, to mark the major milestone by planting a tree at the front of the new facility.
“The Cobar community now has a modern and culturally welcoming facility bringing multiple health services under the one roof, offering patients and staff a better experience,” Mr Hazzard said.
“The hospital was largely untouched for 50 years until the NSW Liberals & Nationals promised and delivered a brand new health facility, as we have done for dozens of other regional communities.
“We made a commitment to the people of Cobar that we would provide access to quality health care closer to home, and this project is a wonderful example of that commitment becoming a reality.”
The new Cobar Health Service, built by Hutchinson Builders, is part of the NSW Government’s state-wide $305million program of works to upgrade existing or build new multipurpose facilities in rural and regional areas.
Scott McLachlan, Chief Executive of Western NSW Local Health District, said the development puts Cobar’s emergency, medical imaging, dialysis and more community health services all under the one roof.
“This project really has been a community effort,” Mr McLachlan said.
“The redevelopment also provides the community with an additional 10 residential aged care rooms as part of the Lilliane Brady Village extension and an Aboriginal courtyard to support healing.”
Construction is now complete and testing of the services will take place before the Cobar Health Service will open to the public at the end of January 2020.
A community walk through hosted by the Cobar Health Service will take place prior to opening.
