‘Bold thinking’: Libs pitch new future for old Women’s and Children’s Hospital
South Australian Liberals will keep the current Women’s and Children’s Hospital in North Adelaide as a health precinct if they win power at the state election in March. Here’s how Opposition Leader Ashton Hurn says it would work.
Opposition Leader Ashton Hurn today announced an elected Liberal government will guarantee the current Women’s and Children’s Hospital site in North Adelaide will not be sold off and would instead remain a health precinct.
The pre-election policy would keep at least 300 beds in the health system, the Liberals claimed.
Adelaide’s current Women’s and Children’s Hospital – parts of which date back to the 1890s – would potentially become a “transition facility” for patients who no longer need to be in acute care under the plan.
The Malinauskas government is currently embarking on the construction of a new $3.2 billion Women’s and Children’s Hospital on what was the heritage Thebarton Police Barracks, which was demolished to make way for the medical facility, next to the newly built Royal Adelaide Hospital in the northwestern park lands.
Earlier this month, the state government said the project remained on track for completion by 2031 and would include 414 overnight beds – an additional 56 compared to the current hospital – and further capacity to add an extra 20 beds in the future.
Three-quarters of the carpark structure was now completed, with the finished building to have 1300 parking spaces – a 40 per cent increase on the current North Adelaide Women’s and Children’s Hospital.
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Hurn today said her team would draw in clinical experts to determine the best future use of the site and produce detailed plans during the Liberal’s first term if elected.
“We cannot afford to lose a single bed in our health system, and only the Liberals are committed to keeping the current WCH site as a health precinct,” Hurn said.
“We’re taking a system-wide approach to easing the pressure and planning for a better healthcare future, starting today.
“We need to do the work now to ensure there’s a plan for the current site’s use.”
The news was welcomed by Australian Medical Association SA President Dr Peter Subramaniam, who described the pitch as “bold thinking”.
“Capacity is an important element of dealing with demand,” Subramaniam told InDaily.
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“We can be creative about using our existing assets. The concept of using it as step down or transitional care has merit.”
But he had a “few concerns” around how the facility would be staffed and costings on infrastructure upgrades at the ageing site.
“It’s going to need the right workforce, and it’s going to need to be integrated with the acute care system,” he said.
“The other thing is, the Women’s and Children’s Hospital is ageing infrastructure, and that’s going to have to be factored in, in terms of the cost.”
It is the latest health policy from the Liberal Party ahead of the March 2026 election.
Previously, the party announced a GP attraction incentive of $40,000, a scholarship program to recruit nurses and midwives, relocation incentives for overseas health professionals relocating to SA, scrapping the GP payroll tax, and more.
“Over the last four years, we’ve seen record ramping, emergency departments overflowing and more people waiting on elective surgery waitlists than ever,” Opposition health spokesperson Heidi Girolamo said.
“Labor have been silent on their plans for the current Women’s and Children’s site, raising questions about whether they will sell it off for housing.
“We cannot let that happen, we simply cannot afford to lose a single bed from our over-burdened health system.”
At a press conference today, acting Health Minister Blair Boyer said selling the current Women’s and Children’s site was “not a consideration” for the government.
“When we release our plans, which we absolutely will, about the existing Women’s and Children’s site, people will be able to see that that is not a consideration,” Boyer said.
