QEII Pharmacy team
The same great pharmacy team is moving to their new ground floor location in the latest Building 1 refurbishment enhancement.
This upgrade was prescribed for completion ahead of the new Clinical Services Building.
The new purpose-built space boasts a dedicated waiting room, private interview room, specialised medication shelving and a strong room for controlled medication.
Patients can now comfortably wait for their medication and have private discussions about their care in the interview room.
A pharmacy strong room is a reinforced, purpose-built room used to securely store high-volume Schedule 8 (controlled) and accountable medications.
Director of Pharmacy, Natalie Tasker, said that the pharmacy upgrade was a significant step in the hospital expansion project.
"With and expanding hospital and theatre capacity, it's very important to have enough medicine storage to be able to meet the changing needs of our service," Ms Tasker said.
Before the move, pharmacy had been in the same location since QEII's opening almost 50 years ago.
While the former space had evolved, the upgrade provides much needed capacity for the large pharmacy team.
"When the hospital first opened, pharmacists only dispensed medications from the pharmacy department," she said.
"Now the clinical practice of pharmacy has evolved, and we have a much larger team that work with nurses, doctors and patients on the ward to optimise medicines and keep patients safe."
The new space has been chosen strategically for its centralised location to the new hospital buildings, making it convenient for staff and patients.
The next tranche of works in the successful delivery of the pharmacy enhancement will be the bulk store to support medication access and distribution across the hospital services.
The Building 1 refurbishment is part of the QEII Hospital Expansion and includes on-demand expanded kitchen, expanded Pathology and Pharmacy departments, and relocated Operational Services staff toilet/change rooms.