Barwon Health

Home
Australia
Geelong, VIC
Barwon Health

Call Directions Website

Victoria's largest regional service, providing state-of-the-art treatment and care.

Barwon Health is established under the Health Services Act 1988 as a Schedule 5 public health service. Formed in 1998, Barwon Health is one of the largest and most comprehensive regional health services in Australia,
providing care at all stages of life and circumstance. With more than 8,758 staff, we are one of Australia’s
largest regional employers and the largest employer in Geelong. Barwon Health provides services for everyone who needs care, regardless of their financial status or the location of their usual residence. As a regional health service, we provide leadership and tertiary referral services across the
Barwon South West region. We provide services from the University Hospital Geelong precinct in central Geelong, the McKellar Centre precinct in North Geelong and other locations including the Sunrise Centre, a partnership initiative with the Geelong Football Club and the Transport Accident Commission that provides a contemporary community venue for specialist community rehabilitation programs. We provide community health services from Anglesea, Belmont, Corio, Newcomb, and Torquay and dental services from Belmont, Corio and Newcomb. Our newest sites include Barwon Health North in Norlane providing, amongst other services, child and family health services, renal dialysis, medical imaging and an urgent care service. Mental health, drugs and alcohol services are provided at the Swanston Centre at University Hospital Geelong, Prevention and Recovery Care (PARC) at Belmont Community Rehabilitation Facility, the McKellar Mental Health and Wellbeing Centre and Blakiston Lodge Psychogeriatric Unit at the McKellar Centre and 10 community-based locations including Belmont, central Geelong, Colac, Corio, Barwon Health North and Newcomb. We provide residential aged care beds across two sites: Alan David Lodge in Charlemont, and three lodges on the
McKellar Centre precinct in North Geelong these include Percy Baxter Lodge, Wallace Lodge and Blakiston Lodge. We provide a comprehensive range of health services including acute care (medicine, surgery, women’s health,
paediatrics, emergency and specialist clinics), mental health, alcohol and other drugs services, primary care,
community health, rehabilitation, geriatric medicine, palliative care, community nursing and hospital in the home. As a major teaching hospital, we have relationships with Deakin University, LaTrobe University, the Gordon
Institute and other tertiary education providers including the University of Melbourne and Monash University. We
provide teaching and training for all health professionals across all disciplines, at all career stages.

16/10/2026

🍃🌻🌾 It’s grass pollen season in Victoria, so you might notice more asthma and hay fever symptoms popping up. This also brings a chance of thunderstorm asthma. It’s a good idea to know what to do if an asthma attack happens, and when asthma first aid might be needed.

Here's a quick guide:

• Step 1: Sit yourself/the person upright

• Step 2: Using a blue/grey reliever puffer (and a spacer, if you have one): shake the puffer, put 1 puff into the spacer, take 4 breaths. Repeat 4 times.

Remember: Shake, 1 puff, 4 breaths.

• Step 3: Wait 4 minutes

If there is no improvement, take 4 more separate puffs of blue/grey reliever,

• Step 4: If there is still no improvement, dial triple zero (000) for an ambulance. Take 4 separate puffs every 4 minutes until emergency assistance arrives.

Call triple zero (000) immediately if you can’t breathe, your asthma suddenly becomes worse, or you are having an asthma attack and there’s no blue or grey reliever available.

For more detailed information or if you use other asthma medications such as Bricanyl, Symbicort or others, follow asthma first aid specific for them: https://go.vic.gov.au/3NDJC6N

16/10/2026

Could you be our next HELPful human?

Following the success of the AGS CoCare®: HELP (Hospital Elder Life Program) pilot at University Hospital Geelong, we're looking for compassionate volunteers to join the team.

HELP volunteers work alongside clinicians to support older patients through companionship, orientation activities, hydration, nutrition, mobility and cognitive engagement, helping improve their hospital experience and wellbeing.

Shifts available Monday to Friday:
🕘 AM: 9:45am-12:45pm 🕧 PM: 12:30pm-3:30pm

Interested in making a meaningful difference?
Apply here: https://bit.ly/3VGkZO1

15/10/2026

Allied Health Professions Day was celebrated across the globe on Wednesday.

At Barwon Health, we acknowledged the amazing work of our staff at our Allied Health Professional Awards.

Six winners took home awards across the categories of compassion, respect, innovation, commitment, accountability and new graduate of the year. Sixteen more were highly commended.

A huge congratulation to all those who were nominated! 🎊🎉

🏆 Winners:
Compassion: Annalise Baulch (Music Therapy)
Respect: Amelia Kranidis (Radiation Therapy)
Innovation: ENT Allied Health Advanced Practice multidisciplinary team
Commitment: Catherine Williams, Allied Health Clinical Trials lead (Physiotherapy)
Accountability: Gen Arblaster (Podiatry)
New graduate of the year: Rhani Speed (Occupational Therapy)

14/10/2026

As the Barwon Women’s and Children’s project continues to rapidly take shape, yesterday's Geelong Advertiser showcased the project and provided a community update.

Geelong’s biggest ever health infrastructure investment continues to advance, with internal fit-out progressing on the new Barwon Women’s and Children’s specialist clinic building and eight-storey tower.

When fully operational, the Barwon Women's and Children's will deliver expanded maternity, paediatric, neonatal and women’s health services in modern, purpose-built facilities.

The Barwon Women's and Children's is being delivered by the Victorian Health Building Authority in partnership with Barwon Health and Built. The Australian Government has provided $50 million in funding for the project as part of the Community Health and Hospitals Program agreement.

Read more here: https://bwc.barwonhealth.org.au/news/barwon-womens-and-childrens-continue-to-take-shape/

13/10/2026

⛈️ 🍃 𝐓𝐡𝐮𝐧𝐝𝐞𝐫𝐬𝐭𝐨𝐫𝐦 𝐚𝐬𝐭𝐡𝐦𝐚

October marks the start of the grass pollen season in Victoria, and the start of epidemic thunderstorm asthma risk forecasting.

Thunderstorm asthma although uncommon, can be sudden, serious, and life threatening for people with asthma or hay fever. If you’ve ever had asthma or hay fever, or if you sneeze or wheeze during pollen season, check in with your GP and make a plan to stay safe. To learn how to protect yourself and those in your care, visit: https://go.vic.gov.au/3Pu1EJ4

12/10/2026

Barwon Health’s Home Dialysis Unit is shining a spotlight the incredible artistic talents of one of our home Haemodialysis patients, Rob Lymer.

Throughout this journey, Rob has used his artistic talents to portray his experiences and feelings through cartoon artwork.

Some are funny, some thought-provoking, and others provide a unique insight into the challenges and emotions associated with living with dialysis.

Rob’s artwork is now proudly displayed throughout the unit, illustrating the journey — and sometimes the obstacles — that many of our patient’s experience.

To see some of Rob’s work, and learn more about his story, visit: https://www.barwonhealth.org.au/news/celebrating-the-artistic-talents-of-our-home-haemodialysis-patient/

09/10/2026

#𝐓𝐡𝐞𝐇𝐞𝐚𝐫𝐭𝐨𝐟𝐁𝐚𝐫𝐰𝐨𝐧𝐇𝐞𝐚𝐥𝐭𝐡
𝐇𝐞𝐥𝐞𝐧 𝐖𝐚𝐝𝐬𝐰𝐨𝐫𝐭𝐡, 𝐂𝐥𝐢𝐧𝐢𝐜𝐚𝐥 𝐍𝐮𝐫𝐬𝐞 𝐄𝐝𝐮𝐜𝐚𝐭𝐨𝐫 | 𝐌𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐚𝐥 𝐇𝐞𝐚𝐥𝐭𝐡, 𝐃𝐫𝐮𝐠𝐬 & 𝐀𝐥𝐜𝐨𝐡𝐨𝐥 𝐒𝐞𝐫𝐯𝐢𝐜𝐞𝐬 (𝐌𝐇𝐃𝐀𝐒)
Throughout my 40 plus years at Barwon Health, my roles have been in acute, community health, aged care assessment and mental health. Each role reinforces the importance of compassionate, person-centred care and the value of working together across multidisciplinary teams. I have been fortunate to be involved with many innovative programs at Barwon Health.

I worked in the hospital wards including the Hospital in the Home (HITH) General Health program then branched out to our community teams. I briefly worked with the Hospital Admission Risk Program, now Connected Care; Newcomb Primary Care Team, where with my Community Health nurse peers, developed our face-to-face smoking cessation program in the community health setting.

Today, I’m a Clinical Nurse Educator with MHDAS, supporting early career nurses and clinicians supporting their professional development and clinical supervision. No two days are the same. One day might be facilitating training for staff across the service, while the next working one-on-one with early career nurses developing clinical skills and reflective practice.

The most rewarding part of my role is seeing clinicians working alongside and advocating with/for clients.

Creating a safe space to learn, ask questions enabling skill development and confidence to provide compassionate, evidence-based care. Healthcare has changed enormously, and I've been fortunate to be part of that journey. It's inspiring to see the continued shift towards more holistic, recovery-oriented and person-centred approaches to mental health care.

I remain passionate about nursing and professional development. It's a privilege to share my experience while supporting the next generation of clinicians who will continue to shape the future of healthcare.

09/10/2026

💙 This World Mental Health Day, we're recognising an important milestone in youth mental health with the opening of the Youth Prevention and Recovery Care (YPARC) overnight service.

YPARC provides a safe, welcoming and recovery-focused environment where young people can access support outside a hospital setting when they need it most. Bringing together clinical, psychosocial and lived experience expertise, the service supports recovery, wellbeing, connection and hope.

More services like those offered by YPARC means less travel and better care for the young people of our region.

Learn more: https://bit.ly/4hC8bkb

We also want to acknowledge and thank our dedicated Barwon Health mental health staff. Your compassion, commitment and expertise in supporting people, families and carers every day, is helping strengthen mental health and wellbeing across our community. 🌟

💙

09/10/2026

This year we are saying farewell to both members of one of Barwon Health’s longest tenured husband and wife duos.

Susan and Christopher Boldkald are both finishing up after beginning at University Hospital Geelong (formerly Geelong Hospital) in the 80s.

Susan was part of the first intake of 10 ward clerks in 1985 after a brief time as a volunteer bed cleaner.

“We were to have two weeks of training and then four weeks on the wards,” Susan said.
“So, we had two days of training and the rest is history.”

She is the last original ward clerk remaining with the hospital, her final day with us will be Monday.

Husband Christopher began working as an emergency department nursing attendant in 1989.
In his time with Barwon Health, Christopher has worked across all corners of the hospital, possessing a skill for calming down patients that his daughter, Emma, described as “magic”.

We’d like to congratulate Susan and Christopher on their amazing careers spanning a combined 78-years and wish them luck for the long and happy retirement ahead.

08/10/2026

⚠️ 𝐑𝐞𝐝𝐮𝐜𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐲𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐫𝐢𝐬𝐤 𝐨𝐟 𝐁𝐮𝐫𝐮𝐥𝐢 𝐮𝐥𝐜𝐞𝐫

Buruli ulcer is spreading in suburbs across Geelong, the Surf Coast and the Bellerine.

Getting a diagnosis and treatment early improves outcomes for skin lesions caused by Buruli ulcer.

If you have a wound that won’t heal, see your GP and ask if it could be Buruli ulcer.

While researchers are still learning exactly how Buruli ulcer spreads, we know that mosquitoes may play a role, and environmental exposure is also important.

There are some simple steps you can take to help protect yourself:

🦟 Avoid mosquito bites.
Use an effective insect repellent containing DEET or picaridin, especially when outdoors.
Wear long sleeves and long pants when gardening or spending time outside, particularly at dawn and dusk when mosquitoes are most active.

🧤 Protect your skin.
Wear gloves while gardening and cover cuts or scratches with a waterproof dressing.
If you do get a cut, wash it promptly, put antiseptic on it and keep it clean.

🪣 Reduce mosquito breeding around your home by removing stagnant water from pot plants, buckets, bird baths, and other containers.

⚠️ And finally, if you come across a sick or injured possum. Don’t touch it. Call wildlife handlers or if you do need to handle it, use gloves and minimise the risk of being scratched or bitten.

These simple actions can make a real difference.

Know the signs, protect yourself from infection, and don’t ignore a skin lesion that isn’t healing.

Address

272-322 Ryrie Street
Geelong, VIC
3220

Telephone

+61342150000

Website

http://www.barwonhealth.org.au/

Alerts

Be the first to know and let us send you an email when Barwon Health posts news and promotions. Your email address will not be used for any other purpose, and you can unsubscribe at any time.

Want your business to be the top-listed health & beauty business in Geelong?

Barwon Health

16/10/2026

16/10/2026

15/10/2026

14/10/2026

13/10/2026

12/10/2026

09/10/2026

09/10/2026

09/10/2026

08/10/2026

Address

Telephone

Website

Alerts

Shortcuts

Share

Category

Listing takedown request