History
During the gold rush of the 1850s the Government Camp provided medical support but mainly for officers and not for miners and the general community. Those wounded at the Eureka Stockade in 1854 received varying attention and the need for a hospital became apparent. A year later building of a hospital commenced.
The five storey Henry Bolte wing, designed by architects Bates Smart was completed in 1994. Styled in postmodern design to blend with the city's heritage buildings it has become a landmark in Ballarat, however many consider the building ugly and bulky.
In 1997, the Ballarat Base Hospital merged with the Queen Elizabeth Centre and the Grampians Psychiatric Service to form Ballarat Health Services.
In 2005 Ballarat Health Services was awarded the Premier's Award for the Outstanding Rural and Regional Health Service in Victoria.
In 2004/05 Ballarat Health Services treated a total of 25,606 acute patients (an increase of 1,308 from the previous year) representing 66,215 acute bed days. The hospital delivered 975 babies in the 2004/05 year and 35,835 patients were seen in the Emergency Department.
Read more about this topic: Ballarat Base Hospital
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