Kathy Hill doesn’t mind being a “regular visitor” to Arcadia Pittwater Private Hospital when the hotel-style, patient-centred care is so good.
Mrs Hill, of Wheeler Heights, was the first patient to be treated at the 85-bed sub-acute care Northern Beaches hospital when it opened on February 6, 2018 and will help celebrate its fifth anniversary today (Monday).
The 60-year-old underwent back surgery and coincidently returned a year later for its first anniversary and has been back several times since for care and support, even serving on the hospital’s consumer representative committee.
“The experience was fantastic. They try to make it as comfortable as possible. If you’re in a hospital environment, it can be very sterile and it can affect some people as far as getting better, so I think the fact it doesn’t feel like that is important to recovery.”
Mrs Hill isn’t the only “regular” – many of the 6,800 inpatients have returned for subsequent visits and the hospital has provided healthcare support for some 47,000 day rehabilitation visits.
Her 85 and 88-year-old parents have also been cared for there.
“It’s been very difficult getting help for them, but the hospital has been fantastic, helping with rehab and physio,” she said.
“Even though you’re in a well-equipped hospital, they take a holistic approach of a person and help them get back to good health in an environment that’s more like a comfortable, friendly, boutique hotel,” she said. “And the rehabilitation facilities are magnificent.”
General Manager and Director of Nursing, Ruth Ryburn, said the five-year milestone was a huge achievement considering what the hospital had been through over the last few years, faced with the COVID pandemic.
“We’re very proud of what the hospital has achieved since opening and the number of patients that have come through our doors and returned,” she said.
“We get very good patient feedback and sometimes people even come from out of the area because of our strong reputation.
“We’re constantly building on that and continually looking at ways we can further develop our services and provide even greater care and support to the Northern Beaches community,” Mrs Ryburn said.
Developed by Arcadia Health Care, Arcadia Pittwater Private Hospital offered a new model of care – focused on sub-acute care in a boutique hotel-like environment – when it opened five years ago. The model has been such a success that Matilda Health Care has developed a new hospital in Western Sydney modelled on Arcadia Pittwater. Quite by coincidence, the new hospital, Matilda Nepean, opens its doors to patients today – the same day as Arcadia Pittwater’s fifth year anniversary.
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