History
Originally opened as the Geelong Infirmary and Benevolent Asylum in 1852 on the Ryrie Street site, it treated 344 inpatients in its first year. By 1862 the number of patients treated had increased to 2450. By the 1890s the buildings were deeded obsolete, with proposals being made for the hospital's relocation to Eastern Park. This was blocked by the city council who objected to the loss of parkland.
By 1917 a public meeting was held calling for a new hospital, to be dedicated to the memory of Lord Kitchener. A building fund was set up, and work started in October 1922. The Geelong and District Kitchener Memorial Hospital as it was known opened on March 13, 1924. The original building consisted of a central administration block which remained until 2007, with wards branching off to each side. From 1927 the Gala Day festival in Geelong helped raise money for the hospital.
Further additions to the buildings included the boiler house on Swanston Street, the Kardina Ward along Bellarine Street in the 1920s, and the Baxter House maternity hospital in 1954 (now the Geelong Private Hospital).
The 1960s saw the Birdsey Wing built behind the existing buildings, with the 1980s seeing the demolition of the old western wards and their replacement with the Heath Wing containing the new emergency department and main entrance. The Dax House psychiatric ward was also built at this time. The Andrew Love cancer centre was built in the early 1990s on the site of the older eastern wards.
Read more about this topic: Geelong Hospital
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