Dr Luke Mitchell 

Meet Dr Luke Mitchell, Clinical Lead for the Moruya Hospital Close Observation Unit and a GP Anaesthetist

We sat down with Luke to find out how he’s been involved in the planning for the new Eurobodalla Regional Hospital and why he’s excited about the expanded intensive care services.

 

Who are you and what is your role in Eurobodalla Health Services?
My name is Dr Luke Mitchell and I'm the clinical lead for the Close Observation Unit and a GP Anaesthetist at Moruya Hospital.

How have you been involved in the planning and design of the Eurobodalla Regional Hospital?
I've been part of the team that's developing the new hospital’s Intensive Care Unit (ICU, as part of the ICU Project User Group and Change Action Group). I’ve been providing advice and feedback about the layout and design of the ICU to make sure the unit meets the needs of the hospital, clinicians, staff, and patients. It's been exciting to see the new unit take shape.

Can you tell us a bit more about the new ICU?
The new hospital includes an eight-bed, level 4 ICU, which is a big step up from the level 3 Close Observation Unit we have at Moruya Hospital. The ICU sits on the top floor of the new hospital building and each full-sized patient room has large windows, with natural light and views.

"It’s the first time we’ll have an ICU in the Eurobodalla which will significantly improve the level of care we can provide for the local community. The higher-level intensive care services will facilitate more complex surgeries and medical management, which will help to attract specialist doctors and nurses to work and live here."

What are some of the benefits for patients?
Having an ICU in the Eurobodalla region means we can perform higher-level procedures to sicker, more critically ill patients who will have less need to travel out of the area to a higher-level hospital. That's going to be a huge benefit to local patients as well as their families, who won’t have to travel as far to visit.

As a clinician what aspects of the new hospital are you excited about?
I’m excited about the range of new and enhanced services that will be available at the new hospital. The new hospital will be able to offer training pathways for our staff and have the capacity to grow, develop and maintain our own workforce while also attracting highly skilled staff to come and work with us. The new health service will function as a much bigger hospital, providing more services to the community and operate more like our larger tertiary hospitals in the big cities.

What would you say to someone thinking about coming to work for Eurobodalla Health Services?
Working for NSW Health in Eurobodalla is amazing. We have a wonderful collegial team here and we're developing a brand new, purpose-built hospital which will provide many opportunities for growth and professional development.

What’s the best thing about living and working in the Eurobodalla?
I moved here over 10 years ago with my young family and there is nothing that could pull me away from the area now. We have an incredible lifestyle with some of the most stunning beaches in Australia along with great mountain biking trails, restaurants, schools and so much more.