Epworth HealthCare is a private not for profit hospital group that operates under its own Act of Parliament, "The Epworth Foundation Act 1980". All surplus revenue generated is reinvested in improving patient care.
Opened in 1920 as a community hospital in Richmond with 25 beds and 5 staff members, Epworth HealthCare has grown to be one of Australia's leading specialist hospitals renowned both locally and overseas.
Epworth HealthCare operates 6 hospitals and is Melbourne's largest not for profit hospital provider. Still at our original location in Richmond, Epworth has significantly expanded with the inclusion of the recently constructed Epworth Eastern campus at Box Hill, Epworth Rehabilitation at Brighton and Camberwell, and Epworth Freemasons and Epworth Cliveden in East Melbourne.
As a not for profit private hospital Epworth HealthCare recieves no State or Federal Government funding and all surplus revenue generated during the year is reinvested in to new services and equipment, aimed at providing the best possible health care for the almost 90,000 patients admitted to Epworth HealthCare hospitals each year.
Epworth HealthCare has a reputation for providing excellence in patient care and has an impressive list of 'firsts' to its name:
| 1981 | First private hospital in Australia to establish an Intensive Care
facility |
| 1989 | First fully computerised Sleep Disorders Unit in Australia
|
| 1989 | First private Emergency Department accredited to accept time
critical medical patients |
| 1989 | First private Renal Dialysis Unit |
| 1996 | First Stroke Unit in a private hospital in Victoria |
| 1997 | First private hospital in Victoria to appoint a GP Coordinator |
| 2000 | First medically managed Hospital in the Home Unit in a
private hospital in Australia |
| 2000 | First pacemaker lead extraction using laser therapy |
| 2002 | First dedicated electrophysiology laboratory opened in Victoria's
health system |
| 2003 | first aboveground radiotherapy centre in Australia. Tattersalls
Cancer Centre opened at Epworth in partnership with Peter Mac |
| 2003 | First hospital in southern hemisphere to use Image Guided
Radiation Therapy |
| 2003 | Epworth introduces first Da Vinci Robotic assisted surgery to
Australia |
| 2003 | Epworth opens the first private sector Medical Observation Unit
in Victoria |
2003
| Three 'world first' vascular procedures are carried out at
Epworth's Vascular Laboratory:
1. Insertion of a large diameter stent (Express Vascular Large Diameter Stent)
2. Ultrasonic thrombolysis trialled at Epworth
3. Use of a new abdominal aortic aneurysm polymer repair device |
| 2005 | Australia's most modern hospital, Epworth Eastern at Box Hill,
is completed and was officially opened by the Federal Health Minister,
Tony Abbott on August 2nd |
Epworth HealthCare's high standards of care have been recognised with Awards for Excellence being received by the Epworth Richmond Emergency Department and the hospital's Cardiac Community Nursing and Secondary Prevention Programme. Epworth HealthCare is a member of the Australian Private Hospitals Association.