It has come to the attention of the Seymour District Memorial Hospital (Seymour Health) Board that there is public interest in the hospital’s deliberations and strategies in relation to exploring strengthening partnerships with our neighbouring health services.

We would like to confirm that:

  1. Seymour Health is not going to close
  2. No decision has been made to merge or amalgamate with any other hospital
  3. We are continuing to develop strategies to strengthen the service delivery at Seymour Health for the benefit of the community
  4. A review process of Victoria’s 76 metropolitan and regional health services begun in late 2023 and a Health Services Plan containing 27 recommendations was provided to the Minister for Health, the Hon. Mary-Anne Thomas, 26 of the 27 recommendations within the Plan were accepted; the key theme of the recommendations is the strengthening of partnerships to improve equity of access to services and improve health outcomes for all Victorians; the recommendation that was not accepted was a consolidation of the number of health services across Victoria through forced amalgamation

Furthermore, we would like to confirm that Seymour Health has a number of existing partnerships such as the Hume Health Service Partnership (fifteen health services across the Hume region), and more specific partnerships for services and programs with a range of health services including, but not limited to, Goulburn Valley Health (Shepparton), Yea District Memorial Hospital, Alexandra District Health, Northern Health (NH), Kilmore Hospital, Northeast Health Wangaratta and Melbourne Health (Royal Melbourne Hospital).

We do this with our neighbouring hospitals and key stakeholders to maximise the provision of local services by achieving efficiencies, increasing local capabilities and increasing access to a broader range of services than we could otherwise provide at Seymour Health.

Specific examples of existing key partnership arrangements that expand Seymour Health’s capability resulting in better access and more services and programs locally include, but are not limited to:

  • Hume Health Service Partnership (an alliance of fifteen health services across the Hume region)
  • Collaborative planning between Seymour Health, Yea District Memorial Hospital and Alexandra District Health
  • Residential In Reach Program; supporting residential aged care between Seymour Health and Yea District Memorial Hospital
  • Regional Palliative Care Consortium; led by Seymour Health providing palliative care services across the Lower Hume region
  • Community Interlink Home Care Packages; a consortium of health services providing care needs and services for consumers receiving care in the home
  • Dialysis; service is delivered in partnership with Melbourne Health
  • Pharmacy services; delivered at Seymour Health through a partnership with Goulburn Valley Health (GVH)
  • Supply and procurement services; are managed in partnership with GVH
  • Payroll services for Seymour Health are undertaken by GVH
  • Secondments of staff from Seymour Health to both Kilmore District Health and Alexandra District Health to assist them through periods of challenge
  • Use of Kilmore District Health’s operating theatre when Seymour Health’s operating theatres were closed for repair works
  • Sharing of essential medical equipment and staff between Seymour Health and NH; for example, anaesthetic machine provided by NH so that surgeries could continue at Seymour Health when our anaesthetic machine was not working and NH supplying Physiotherapists to ensure service continuity while we recruited to vacancies in this area
  • Partnership with Northeast Health Wangaratta to enable rotating doctors at Seymour Health through the Rural Hospitalist Program
  • Partnership with Mitchell Shire Council, Nexus Primary Care and GVH to design and attract funding for the Seymour Community & Wellbeing Hub

One significant risk that is under review by the Board is the reliance on visiting general practitioners (GPs) for medical officers at Seymour Health. The Board is investigating whether this is a sustainable practice given the short supply of local GPs and the demand in the community for GPs. The Board is considering all options to ensure that the Seymour and district community has access to GPs in the long term, and as such, is in discussions with other health services to explore ways to improve service delivery through strengthening of existing partnerships.

We, the Board, hope that this information addresses the interest shown by our community. We remain committed to delivering a broad range of services that meet the current, emerging and future healthcare needs of our community.

We would like to express our gratitude for your ongoing support and understanding through what is a challenging time for all small rural hospitals and health services.

If you have any questions or concerns, please do not hesitate to contact the Board via the following email: info@seymourhealth.org.au

Sincerely,

Board of Directors
Seymour Health