Melbourne’s Alfred Hospital has opened the newly refurbished Helen Macpherson Smith Burns Unit after spending $2.6 million on the upgrade.

 

The hospital, which played a major role in treating victims from Victoria’s 2009 Black Saturday bushfires, raised a total of $1.5 million for the project, with the Victorian State Government supplementing the project with a further $1.1 million.

 

 "It enables improved management of critically ill patients and those who require prolonged care as well as enhancing infection control, improving patient observation by staff through better layout and enabling early rehabilitation opportunities,” said Victorian Premier Ted Baillieu.

 

The centre provides acute care for severely-injured burns victims, reconstructive surgery, rehabilitation services, outpatient services for people with minor burns and training for rural clinicians.