WORK on the East Grampians Health Service community centre upgrade is on track to be completed by mid-year.
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The $4.12 million refurbishment includes a much larger waiting and reception area, additional office and consult suites, and will integrate more child and maternal health services than were previously available.
Disabled parking and access will also be installed.
East Grampians chief Andrew Freeman said the buildings will be ready to move into by May.
The initial completion date was to be November 2017, but construction delays, including a shortage of some materials, pushed the date back.
Director of Community Services, Sally Philip said the expansion of suites and the integration of child and maternal services will improve health outcomes, as having a centralized health hub will mean that patients will not need to make multiple trips to different facilities.
That will mean that they will be more likely to access further services.
“We will have the opportunity to have more visiting services,” she said.
“We’re very excited to have maternal and child health here. It will be a one-stop shop for services and we’ll be able to do cross-referrals.”
An example of this is providing dental for expectant mothers.
"One of the most important times to get a dental check up is when you’re pregnant,” she said.
“It’s a good opportunity to provide that care.
“When someone’s in the toy library, we can say ‘have you heard about this service?’”
Ms Philip said the vision of an integrated health facility was one of the reasons it got funded.
The Victorian government announced the funding toward the upgrade in March 2017.
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