From major hospital builds and new mental health services to regional upgrades and more ways to access care, here’s what’s changing across South Australia.
There’s a lot happening in South Australian healthcare right now.
Some projects have just opened. Others have only just started construction. And several of the state’s biggest hospital builds have reached major milestones.
From new cancer treatment in Adelaide’s east to mental health care in the north, an upgraded helipad at Clare and major hospital redevelopments, here’s what’s happening where.
New WCH moves into major construction
The new Women’s and Children’s Hospital remains one of the largest health infrastructure projects undertaken in South Australia.
Major construction of the main hospital building has moved into its next stage, with 287 concrete piles being installed to support the future clinical building. Work is also progressing on the 1300-space hospital car park.
When it opens in 2031, the hospital will have 414 overnight beds across the Women’s and Children’s Health Network – 56 more than the current hospital, including capacity for another 20 expansion beds.
It will also have five additional operating theatres, twice the current number of overnight oncology beds, five additional neonatal cots, a larger emergency department and women’s intensive care located alongside the paediatric ICU.
Mental health crisis centre opens in Adelaide’s north
A new $22 million, 16-bed Crisis Stabilisation Centre has opened next to Lyell McEwin Hospital.
Known as Nakurrinthi, the centre operates 24/7 and provides stays of up to three nights for people experiencing a mental health crisis who need intensive support but don’t require acute medical care in an emergency department.
Support is provided by a multidisciplinary team including doctors, nurses, allied health clinicians and lived-experience practitioners, with counselling rooms, a family lounge and shared social spaces.
Clare Hospital gets upgraded helipad
Clare Hospital’s upgraded helipad is now operating after a major works program to bring it up to current aviation safety standards.
The upgrade included a larger landing area plus new lighting, beacons and navigation systems, allowing rescue helicopters and SA Ambulance Service MedSTAR to transfer patients directly from the hospital. Clare Hospital averages about 35 air retrievals each year.
It’s part of a $23.4 million state government program upgrading 13 regional hospital helipads across South Australia. Clare is the 11th site completed.
Mount Barker Hospital takes shape
The $365.8 million state government-funded redevelopment of Mount Barker Hospital is well underway, with the main clinical services building due to open by the end of 2027.
The new hospital will triple inpatient capacity from 34 to 102 beds and add three operating theatres, a post-surgery recovery suite, expanded maternity, paediatric, neonatal, medical, surgical and palliative care, plus chemotherapy, renal dialysis, pharmacy, pathology, community and allied health services.
It will also include a new 12-bed acute mental health inpatient unit – the first of its kind in the Adelaide Hills.
A new multi-storey car park is already open, with more than 600 spaces now available across the site.
Final stages of work, including secondary works around the existing hospital site, will continue into 2028.
Playford gets $12 million dialysis unit
A new $12 million dialysis unit has opened at the Playford Health Hub, allowing an additional 84 patients to access kidney treatment in Adelaide’s north.
The Playford Satellite Dialysis Unit’s 30 chairs are able to treat up to 120 people each week. This doubles the haemodialysis treatment capacity in Adelaide’s north, building on services already provided at Lyell McEwin Hospital.
Dialysis usually takes four to five hours and is generally needed three times a week for people with kidney failure, so having more treatment available closer to home can cut a lot of regular travel.
The Repat adds 18,000 imaging appointments a year
More than $11 million is being invested in expanded SA Medical Imaging facilities at the Repat Health Precinct in Daw Park.
A new MRI scanner, another CT scanner and three new ultrasound scanners are due to be operating by the end of 2026, creating capacity for an extra 18,000 imaging appointments each year.
The new MRI will also mean around 250 inpatients a year can avoid being transferred to Flinders Medical Centre or the Royal Adelaide Hospital just to have a scan.
Burnside is getting an $80 million health precinct
Construction has started on a new $80 million Burnside Hospital Health Precinct on Kensington Road.
Burnside is a private not-for-profit hospital, with the new precinct being designed and constructed by Cambridge Medical Property. The state government’s role was in the planning process, including elevating the project for assessment and approval.
When it opens, the precinct will expand cancer treatment and day surgery in Adelaide’s east. It will include:
- a linear accelerator for radiation treatment
- a 33 per cent increase in Burnside Hospital’s chemotherapy capacity
- two new operating theatres, capable of handling around 3500 additional procedures a year when fully operational
- diagnostic imaging and pathology
- fertility services
- more than 150 underground car parks.
The first patients are expected to be treated there in mid-to-late 2028.
Clearview gets SA’s first Haven residence
SA’s first Haven Foundation Australia residence has opened at Clearview, providing 16 self-contained homes for people living with psychosocial disability.
The $5.8 million development was backed by the state government through SA Health and Housing SA, and combines long-term accommodation with 24/7 onsite support through Mind Australia.
It’s designed partly for people who no longer need acute hospital care but still need ongoing support before they can live more independently in the community.
Flinders Medical Centre’s expansion ahead of schedule
Flinders Medical Centre is in the middle of a major $498 million expansion, jointly funded by the state and federal governments.
The new Acute Services Building is on track for completion in 2028 and will add 98 beds, including two 32-bed adult inpatient units, an 18-bed same-day medical unit and a 16-bed satellite intensive care unit. It will also add four operating theatres, recovery areas, a day-surgery admissions area and a new eye surgery clinic.
The project reached its “topping out” milestone in June, meaning the building’s structural frame had reached its highest point ahead of schedule.
Some parts of the broader expansion are already operating, including 20 extra beds at Flinders Medical Centre, 32 older-persons beds at the Repat, a new MRI and CT suite, and a major expansion of the Margaret Tobin Centre for mental health care.
Existing hospitals are getting upgrades too
It’s not all new buildings. More than $20 million is being spent on 78 smaller upgrades and maintenance projects at hospitals and health facilities across SA this financial year.
That includes more than $5 million across six projects in Adelaide’s south, with a $2.1 million electrical upgrade and almost $1.7 million in roof works at Flinders Medical Centre, plus $1 million to upgrade theatre and sterilisation facilities at Noarlunga Hospital.
Elsewhere, Lyell McEwin Hospital is getting a $1.5 million lift-controls upgrade, while funding is also going towards works at The Queen Elizabeth Hospital, Glenside and Hampstead, a new backup generator at Renmark Hospital and upgrades at Strathalbyn and Naracoorte.
More ways to get care without a hospital visit
Building and expanding hospitals is only part of the picture. There are also more ways to get care for health problems that need attention but don’t necessarily need an emergency department.
Other options include:
- 1800MEDICARE: Call 1800 633 422 for free health advice from a registered nurse, available 24/7. They’ll discuss your symptoms and guide you to the care you need, whether that’s at home, seeing a GP, visiting a pharmacy or urgent care clinic, or being referred to a virtual care service. The state government is investing $5.6 million in the SA service in 2026-27.
- SA Virtual Care Service: Adults can receive specialist virtual care when appropriate. Access is by referral, including through 1800MEDICARE.
- Child and Adolescent Virtual Urgent Care Service: Children aged six months to 18 years can access free virtual urgent care from 9am-9pm.
- Medicare Urgent Care Clinics: These nine federally-funded clinics provide bulk-billed, walk-in treatment across the state for urgent but non-life-threatening problems such as minor fractures, infections, wounds and burns. No appointment or referral is needed.
- 24/7 pharmacies: Pharmacies at Clovelly Park, Hallett Cove, Norwood and Salisbury are open around the clock, including public holidays. More than 500,000 people have used the state-subsidised services.
- UTI treatment through community pharmacies: More than 14,400 UTI consultations were delivered in the service’s first two years. During its first year, eligible UTI presentations at metropolitan EDs fell by 27.3 per cent, with regional ED presentations down 23.2 per cent.
- Easier contraception at community pharmacies: If you’ve had a prescription in the last 12 months, participating pharmacists can resupply your oral contraceptive without a new script after a consultation
If you’re seriously ill or have a life-threatening emergency, call Triple Zero (000) or go to an emergency department.
For more information on where to get care, visit the wheretogetcare.sa.gov.au
