Gippsland Southern Health Service was created as a result of the amalgamation of Korumburra District Hospital and Woorayl (Leongatha) District Hospital in 1992, Gippsland Southern Health Service (GSHS) provides a comprehensive range of Specialist General, Acute, Community Aged and Residential, Allied Health and Community Services to the residents of the Shire of South Gippsland in Victoria.
The 2015-2020 GSHS Strategic Plan was developed after an extensive consultation with staff, community and other stakeholders. This process also saw a renewal of the Vision and Mission of the organisation and the development of a set of organisational values and strategic goals.
GSHS Mission is Building a healthier community together, the Vision is Excellence in healthcare. Our values are: Excellence, Individuality, Collaboration, Accountability, Respect and Empowerment.
A comprehensive range of health services are provided from the two main campuses located 14 km apart at Korumburra and Leongatha. Community based services are also provided at the Tarwin Lower and District Community Health Centre.
GSHS employs over 400 staff, who fill approximately 230 Full Time Equivalent positions. The health service treated just over 4,000 inpatients in the 2015/16 financial year, provided approximately 30,000 nursing home bed days, and in excess of 30,000 outpatient and community services.
We commenced our partnership with the Studer Group in 2015, with a particular focus on enhancing staff engagement following significant changes to the Executive team. We name our program the Excellence, every person, every time program or simply the Excellence program.
Over the 2.5 years of our partnership we have moved from an organisation at risk of not meeting safety and quality standards and in financial difficulty to one that is fully accredited against the National Safety and Quality Health Service Standards and Aged Care accreditation standards. We have achieved a significant turn-around in financial performance, from a deficit of $1.35 million in 2014-15 to breakeven in 2015-16, an improvement of 150%. Our staff engagement index has increased by 9 percentage points from 61% in 2014 to 68% in 2016, our patient engagement as measured by the Victorian Healthcare Experience Survey has remained high with 98.34% of patients rating their hospital experience as either “very good” or “good” in the April-June quarter of 2016. And, there has been a steady decrease in patient complaints.
Together with the Studer Group we are on a journey to improve the sustainability and viability of our organisation, develop a culture of true person centred care, and be recognised by our community as an organisation that they can rely to provide “Excellence in Healthcare”.
We are honoured and extremely pleased to be named the Studer Group Australian Healthcare Organisation of Distinction. The award recognises our team’s commitment toward improving the patient experience and the achievement of our vision - Excellence in healthcare. Why? Because the people who come to us for care are our community, our friends and our families.